Although playing against inferior opponents than when they faced Kazakhstan and Cyprus, the top two teams in Group 'C', Malta showed improvement when they came up against Georgia in their final group match of the preliminary round.

However, they could not avoid the third defeat, going down 5-2. The only consolation was a strong finish which earned our boys two late goals after having gone 5-0 behind.

The scoreline could have been less gaping had Malta not been guilty of some sloppy defending early in the match. In fact our team paid dearly for committing two mistakes which were turned into goals.

On top of that the Georgian goalkeeper Zakaidze put up a five-star performance which denied Malta certain goals at crucial stages in the game.

The Georgians did display some neat holding and passing technique, with the Maltese relying mostly on fast breaks which very often had John Cutajar on the end of long balls.

Titladze's early brace was complemented by two more from Tsereteli and Asatiani for a 4-0 half-time lead for Georgia.

Bokeria made it 5-0 soon after ends were changed. That produced a bold reaction from the Maltese, led from the sidelines by coach Michal Striz. There were more saves from the Georgian goalkeeper before Mark Ellul Sullivan and Jeanbert Gatt reduced the deficit. Our players then contrived to squander another clear opening in what tuned out to be a rousing finale.

Commenting at the end of the game, Striz said that Malta played better than in their previous matches, stressing that this was a sign that the team can improve further.

In a highly entertaining first duel in the afternoon, unfortunately marred by a stoppage midway through the second period due to a power breakdown inside the pavilion, Kazakhstan confirmed they were the best outfit when they beat Cyprus 6-3 to qualify for the next phase of the competition.

The final standings showed Kazakstan first on six points, Cyprus second on four, Georgia third with two and Malta propping up the table with zero points.