I was taken completely by surprise yesterday week when I attended the Malta-Serbia & Montenegro rugby match at the Hibernians Ground in Corradino.
It was certainly one of those pleasant surprises which have become such a rarity in local sports activities.
Of course, I am referring to the terrific atmosphere on the terraces where a capacity crowd, mostly made up of young people eager for success, gave a resounding reception and encouraging support to the Malta side before and even during the match, even if the result was not in the local team's favour.
Most of the credit for the creation of such an atmosphere must be given to the cheer leader whose voice on the microphone stirred everyone out of their seats as, almost everyone, automatically joined in the proceedings.
It was an enjoyable afternoon which will not be forgotten easily by the 3,000 plus crowd present. As many were heard saying after the match, even in defeat, it was well worth the meagre Lm2 paid as an admission fee.
There was, however, one jarring small incident, during the two-minutes silence for the late Pope John Paul II. A few who started clapping were silenced when, in my opinion, they should have been joined by the whole crowd in paying tribute to a man who had done so much throughout his Papacy - truly the greatest gift of God to the world!
In any case, Saturday afternoon will go down in Malta's sporting history as one of the most memorable in so far as spectators are concerned.
It is a pity that we do not have frequent occasions such as those. That is what our sportsmen need. To perform in front of packed terraces where the public makes its voice heard.
It is obvious that even our sportsmen will be able to raise their levels when they are given the right support. On that Saturday, the Maltese rugby players simply relished that support and other sportsmen, including some notable national football team players who were present among the crowd, must have envied their rugby colleagues.
They must have said to themselves: "But why do Maltese sports enthusiasts desert us when we are in action at Ta' Qali? Do not we also deserve the same kind of support?"
Of course, I believe they - and every other local sportsman or woman for that matter - deserve such strong support.
But I must admit there is a difference. While the rugby team has shown in the recent past that it is determined to do well and that was followed up with some excellent results which have lifted it to the 54th ranking spot in the world, the national football team sometimes fails to show any determination and the results obtained in most of its matches do not serve as an encouragement for the local football enthusiasts to pay a visit to Ta' Qali whenever it is in action. This is also unfortunately confirmed by the low ranking at present being occupied by the Malta team in the FIFA ranking list.
Something which the local football authorities might be able to remedy in future concerns the Under 21 side.
This team, for quite a long time, starting with the Robert Gatt era, followed by Ray 'Zazu' Farrugia and now Mark Miller, has enjoyed quite a number of successes in its field.
But the team, despite deserving the strong support in evidence last Saturday, has never attracted more than 300-400 fans, even in some instances when the MFA just waived the admission fee. I believe that when possible, such matches involving this team should be played on a Saturday, possibly in the early afternoon. And, of course, the association must take a leaf out of the rugby association's notebook and see how they plan their marketing for such matches.
The Rugby boys always manage to produce an atmosphere even when matches used to be played at the Marsa Stadium. But at Hibs Ground on Saturday, it was certainly the right atmosphere.
Henry Brincat
Sports Editor
[email protected]