Rabat A 2
Dingli S 0
Rabat Ajax registered a double over neighbours ten-man Dingli Swallows thanks to two late goals scored by Christian Muscat and Ryan Micallef.
The match was very balanced with Dingli giving Rabat a very good run for their money. But on 62 minutes Reuben Vella was sent off and Dingli never recovered as Rabat took the upperhand and scored the goals that mattered in the last ten minutes.
Dingli had a very good start collecting a series of corners that left the Rabat defenders pressed inside their penalty area. On seven minutes Kurt Formosa hit slightly wide.
Rabat took some time to settle down and went close with a Caushi freekick. On the other end Dingli went close again with a Paolo Ciantar lob that sailed over the crossbar.
Rabat completely dominated the last fifteen minutes of the first half going close on several occasions with Ryan Micallef their most dangerous player. On 28 minutes he headed slightly wide and ten minutes later he was unlucky when he trapped a good cross from Caushi and his shot on the turn slammed against the crossbar.
Rabat piled up the pressure and a Joe Cornforth header went over the bar. In the dying minutes Ryan Micallef passed towards Adam Smeir who hesitated in front of goal and in the last shot of the first half Ryan Micallef missed the upright by a whisker with a great shot from the edge of the area.
In the second half Dingli went close with a Konda shot missing the base of the upright and Formosa shot well over the bar. On 62 minutes Reuben Vella received a second booking and Rabat immediately pushed everything forward.
On 75 minutes Dingli goalkeeper Farrugia made a great save off a Smeir grounder but five minutes he was completely deceived by a Christian Muscat cross shot that finished at the back of the net.
In stoppage time Ryan Micallef crowned a great performance when he beat Farrugia with a precise grounder following a Clifford Gauci cross.
Rabat A – S. Mintoff, C. Schembri, J. Cornforth, J. Caruana, A. Smeir, D. Falzon (N. Caruana)(S. Gauci), C. Muscat, V. Caushi, R. Micallef (A. Rustemi), D. Azzopardi, C. Gauci.
Dingli S. – J. Farrugia, F. Owusu, K. Pace, R. Micallef (M. Brincat), P. Ciantar, L. Konda, K. Formosa, E. Farrugia, C. Porcari, R. Vella, R. Briffa.
Referee – Andre Arciola