Rabat 0

Hibernians 3

Rabat A: S. Mintoff (J. Azzopardi), C. Schembri (P. Borg), I. Carapic, J. Caruana, J. Felice, A. Smeir, M. Fuster (H. Backhaus), D. Falzon, C. Brincat, Y. Cauchi, D. Azzopardi

Hibernians: M. Muscat, A. Pulis, R. Camilleri, J. Pearson, R. Soares, A. Cohen, B. Kristensen (J. Bezzina), J.Lima (A. Azzopardi), Z. Levnaic, J. Nwoba (J.P. Farrugia), M. Dias

Referee: M. Spiteri

Asst.refs: S.Attard, L. Portelli

4th official: F. Zammit

Scorers: Z. Levnaic 33, A. Pulis 35, J. Lima 45 pen

Yellow cards: C. Schembri, D. Falzon, I. Carapic

Player of the match: Jackson Lima (Hibernians)

TMI top 3: 1. J. Lima 2. Z. Levnaic 3. J. Caruana

It turned out to be yet another comfortable afternoon for Hibernians at the end, after the first half hour of the match looked to be a tricky fixture for the Paolites against defensive Rabat Ajax.

In fact, Hibernians failed to produce anything, or trouble the Rabat keeper for the first 30 minutes, but frustration soon turned into relief with two quick goals in as many minutes soon after. These came from headed efforts by their two defenders Levnaic and Pulis. And things became further complicated for Rabat when their goalkeeper Sean Mintoff was carried off with a neck injury and then conceded the third goal from a penalty to fall further behind at halftime.

Rabat had their Lithuanian striker Nerjus Astrauskas suspended and started with Justin Felice instead. Bolstered by an encouraging performance, despite defeat, against Birkirkara in the previous match, the Magpies began with a prudent defensive plan with four players in line in front of their back four.

Thus Hibernians were allowed little comfort on the ball and struggled to penetrate through the middle. Their wide players Cohen and Dias found few openings, if any, and Nwoba, preferred to Ribeiro in attack, was mostly subdued.

For the first half hour, neither side managed a shot on target, with Rabat having two tame efforts from Felice and Azzopardi missing the target. Lima put his freekick narrowly wide for Hibernians on 24 minutes.

Felice also missed the target by inches with his free kick on the half hour, before Rabat collapsed to concede three goals within 12 minutes before the half was over. Their rearguard was again rendered vulnerable from dead ball situations.

On 33 minutes, on a Cohen sailing free kick from the left, Zoran Levnaic nipped in to beat keeper Mintoff with a free header and two minutes later, Adrian Pulis connected on a Lima corner from the right which the Rabat keeper failed to intercept, to head in Hibernians’ second.

On 43 minutes, Rabat keeper Mintoff was stretchered off when injured in a collision with an opponent on a Dias low cross from the left.

Substitute keeper Jonathan Azzopardi had to pick the ball from behind him hardly two minutes later, beaten by a Jackson Lima penalty, awarded to Hibernians for a Falzon wreckless tackle on Camilleri inside the Rabat area.

Rabat were a little more bullish in the second half as they put in Heiner Backhaus for Fuster in midfield, although they lacked the guile to fashion any clear cut chances. Smeir hit over Azzopardi’s cross from the left.

It helped that Hibernians eased off slightly, if not entirely, although the Rabat keeper remained the busier, repelling a Nwoba close range effort on a Lima cross past the hour.

On a positive note, striker Jean Paul Farrugia made his return for Hibernians after a long lay off, going in as a substitute for Nwoba on 70 minutes.

Ten minutes later, he had a goal disallowed for an alleged foul on the grounded goalkeeper, who had fumbled the forward’s first effort but was beaten on the second, following a Dias through pass