Paul Falzon is probably better known to local sports enthusiasts as a waterpolo goalkeeper. In fact, he first made a name for himself at Sirens, but especially later at Neptunes and Valletta, as well as with the national team. Yet after his successful spell in waterpolo, he has also been successful in leading Luxol St Andrew’s for the last 22 years as their president. Under his charge, the club has been turned into a hive of activity, with the nursery and football school catering for more than 500 children. And he is still looking forward to completing another big project which has been on the waiting list for several years now. Here he tells his story to Henry Brincat

Paul Falzon is a man full of energy, and at present he is planning to give Luxol St Andrew’s another push to make it financially self-sufficient.

Since the club was accepted as a full member of the Malta Football Association it has made giant leaps forward and has also played for some years in the Premier League.

Falzon said: “Today we work on a professional basis. It is the only club that opens in the mornings every day of the week. We also have a full-time secretary employed at the club.”

That shows how the amount of work has increased in the last few years, especially after the synthetic five-a-side pitches were introduced. “At first, we had just two of these pitches, but the demand was so big that we had three others installed. Nowadays, apart from their being used by adult players, these pitches are also used by our nursery and the Bobby Charlton football school and the St Andrew’s Football School who, between them, cater for more than 500 children,” said Falzon.

The club president, however, says that these five pitches are not enough. “We also make use of the larger size pitch, which does not yet have an artificial surface. We plan to start working on this project near the end of this season, and hope to have it ready in time for the start of next year’s season.”

The project to build a stand on the far side of the pitch has stalled, said Falzon. “As soon as we are granted the permit to go ahead with the work, we will see where to get the money from and try to finish it as early as possible. It’s a pity that the permit did not come earlier because it will obviously cost more now. But we believe that it will help the club to be financially self-sufficient and will also enable the club to make its own contribution to increasing sports tourism through the game of football.

“We have been waiting for such a permit for around three years now, and I cannot see any reason why it should not be granted immediately, particularly since we are not asking for any form of grant from the government to start the project,” he said.

He added that Luxol were proud of the fact that players such as Gilbert Agius, Anatole Debono, Brian Said, Andrew Hogg, Sean Sullivan and John Stivala, among many others, have all emerged from the club’s nursery.

The club is involved not only in football. “There is also the basketball section and, apart from our own nursery, there are also the Bobby Charlton Football School, the St Andrew’s Nursery (a joint project with St Andrew’s School of Football in England), and the basketball nursery. Moreover, two other schools, the Mario Muscat School for goalkeepers and Mondo Messina Calcio (Malta) also operate from our premises,” said Falzon.

The St Andrew’s president also spoke about his waterpolo career. He said: “It all started at Veccia, where my family staying during the summer months. I was asked to join Sirens who had some stalwarts among their ranks those days, among them Muscat and Zammit. My first official match was at Sliema Pitch against Balluta. I remember I was demoralised by the great Freddie Griscti who beat me twice with shots from half-pitch – he took full advantage of my inexperience. I asked to be replaced, but another Sirens great, George Borg, disagreed. He wanted me to carry on, and some good saves in the second session enabled me to regain my confidence, and my career continued. I used to share the Sirens goalkeeping position with Sant Cassia.

“In the late 1960s, I moved to Neptunes, but in the first year, I was reserve to Jimmy Micallef Eynaud. I played my first match for them in my second year. Actually I and the team did not play, but still won the Kitty Kola Cup (a replay after the draw in the final held the previous year). This was because Sirens protested against Freddie Griscti’s signing by Neptunes.

“With Neptunes, I stayed till 1971 and then I joined Valletta, where I stayed for seven years, until the end of my career. I won every top local honour in the game of waterpolo with Neptunes and Valletta. Only the Player of the Year award eluded me, although on one occasion I was voted a close second,” he said.

Falzon also played for the national team. “I was in the squad that travelled to Tunisia for the Mediterranean Games. There we started with a victory against Turkey, but then lost heavily in matches against the top guns, including Yugoslavia, France and Greece. I also played for Malta in the international tournaments in the 1970s that were held at the Valletta and Neptunes Pitches. Those were very successful tournaments where the attendances, especially at Valletta, were unbelievable.

“But I still think the biggest crowd I ever saw for a waterpolo match was at Birzebbuga. It was my first match with Valletta. Every corner was crammed, and it was a pleasure to play in front of such big crowds those days. We eventually won that match 2-1.”

Asked to mention a memorable moment, he quickly referred to the above match, but he also relished the victory against Turkey in the Mediterranean Games in Tunisia. “I also had a great time when Luxol St Andrew’s won promotion to the Premier League for the first time,” he added.

His biggest disappointment in his career was when Valletta, after having won the waterpolo league, did not fare well the following year. He said: “We had the same good team, but the results were not forthcoming.

“One other thing which seriously frustrates me is the amount of bureaucracy that exists in the granting of permits for projects such as the one we are proposing at our premises,” he added.

Falzon also said that he thought Freddie Griscti would remain one of the best ever Malta players in the game of waterpolo. “But I would also say the Valletta team, including players like Joe “Ors” Attard, John “Buffalo” Curmi, Harry Cutajar, David Martin and the rest, were all great players, as were Bertie Portelli of Neptunes and George Borg of Sirens, to mention but a few,” he added.