Floriana 1

Pieta H. 1

Floriana: R. Gauci, I. Azzopardi, M. Caruana, C. Ciantar, A. Da Silva, C. Cassar (N. Baldacchino), T. Cilia, M. Micallef, M. Brincat, J. Briffa, K. Formosa (S. Wellman)

Pieta H: S. Darmanin, P. Aquilina, C. Okoh, G. Sciberras, C. Calleja (D. Camenzuli), S. Ortas, B. Nisevic, S. Repuh, A. Spiteri (C. Sammut), S. Ciscaldi, C. Frendo

Referee: M. Borg Asst refs: P. Agius, J. Rapa 4th official: C. Lautier

Scorers: T. Cilia, C. Frendo

Yellow cards: S. Repuh

Player of match: A. Da Silva (Floriana)

TMI top three: 1. S. Repuh 2. A. Da Silva 3. C. Frendo

Cleaven Frendo scored an important late equaliser for Pieta as Deanov’s men maintain their push in the Championship Pool against Floriana, a side with a similar ambition.

Although the draw suits Floriana better, ahead of their difficult remaining matches, Msida’s defeat in the previous match, gives Pieta a breather.

After going down to an early Floriana lead in an uninspiring first half, Pieta displayed considerably more inventiveness after the change of ends and for all the chances they carved out in the second 45 minutes of the match, they deserved the draw.

Floriana did not stand back though and also had their fair share. After the previous loss against Hibernians, the Greens needed a win to put their minds at rest. However they failed to add to their early lead and finally they were left to rue the missed chances, as the post denied them a potential win in the dying stages.

Pieta made only one change from the side which drew against Msida the previous week, relagating Anatole Debono to the bench and giving Andrew Spiteri a start.

Floriana had Gauci back in goal and Clifton Ciantar in defence, but had the still unfit Gango-Rtsa missing as well as Wellman and Baldacchino among the substitutes. There were starts for Formosa and Briffa instead.

An early goal after only two minutes play put Floriana in command. Trevor Cilia ran in from the blind side to shoot in Brincat’s cross from the right.

Pieta’s tit-for-tat response came ten minutes later but Ortas drilled his shot against the bar, much to Floriana’s relief. On the quarter hour, Floriana had legitimate claims for a penalty turned down after Micallef, who was in possession advancing inside the Pieta area, was pushed by the chasing Nisevic.

And after a Brincat insidious free-kick was tipped over the bar into a corner by Darmanin midway through the half, the remaining minutes were uneventful with a high shortage of scoring opportunities.

After the re-start, Floriana were the first to go closer as Azzopardi’s glancing header on a Cassar free-kick went narrowly wide.

Pieta upped the tempo, probing for an equaliser. Ciscaldi’s shot was only parried by keeper Gauci and allowed Repuh to cross from the right but the Floriana defence cleared into a corner.

On the other end a Cilia cross from the left was headed centrally by Micallef.

On 66 minutes Floriana put in Baldacchino for Cassar but the Hotspurs kept up the pressure. On 72 minutes Repuh’s goal bound effort, with Gauci out of place, was saved into a corner by the sliding Briffa.

On 78 minutes, Pieta effected a double substitution putting in Camenzuli and Sammut and hardly two minutes later they reaped dividends.

Cleaven Frendo controlled Repuh’s long ball inside the Floriana area and lobbed the ball over the keeper, when slightly out of his line.

It was anybody’s game after that as both sides kept up with their offensive play in search of a killing blow. An Ortas shot was blocked by keeper Gauci in a frantic scramble and Darmanin saved Baldacchino’s shot from the right.

In the dying minutes Da Silva’s low drive after his a resourceful run from the right flank deserved better fate as it rebounded off the foot of the post.

Pieta also went close but substitute Camenzuli shot Frendo’s inviting cross wide.

In the final anlysis, a draw was a fair result.