The YoHealth Malta Premier League Closing Round Top Six and Bottom 6 got under way last weekend, with matches from the top-tier section of the championship being held at the Gozo Stadium.
Floriana and Marsaxlokk emerged as the big winners in the Top Six Closing Round, as Ħamrun Spartans suffered a damaging late defeat. At the same time, Birkirkara and Tarxien Rainbows made crucial moves at the other end of the table.
Here is a roundup of all the action from Matchday 28 by SportsDesk.
Naxxar Lions FC (0 – 1) Floriana FC
Floriana kept control of the Top Six Closing Round phase with a narrow but valuable 1-0 win over Naxxar Lions, courtesy of a first-half penalty by Jake Grech.
Naxxar tried to fight back and had two efforts coming off the woodwork, but the second-half dismissal of Louis Pahama damaged their hopes of salvaging a point from the match.
Marsaxlokk FC (3 – 2) Ħamrun Spartans FC
Ħamrun Spartans, meanwhile, suffered a major setback after conceding a dramatic 98th-minute goal in a 3-2 defeat to Marsaxlokk.
The Spartans started brightly, with Ivan Inzoudine testing Christoffer Mafoumbi, but Marsaxlokk struck early through Oualid El-Hasni’s powerful header.
Ħamrun responded through an Emerson Marcelina penalty after a handball decision confirmed by FVS, but Marsaxlokk regained the lead before the break when Domantas Šimkus scored against his former club.
The second half tilted further against Ħamrun when Marcelina was sent off, leaving them a man down for over 30 minutes. Despite this, Joseph Mbong hauled them level with a composed finish to keep hopes alive.
However, just as the Spartans looked set to salvage a point, substitute Triston Caruana struck deep into stoppage time, his deflected long-range effort sealing a dramatic win for Marsaxlokk and leaving Ħamrun six points behind Floriana.
Valletta FC (2 – 1) Gżira United FC
Valletta put themselves back in contention to battle for a place in the Final Four when they overcame Gżira United 2-1.
After a goalless first-half, during which Gżira had the better chances, Valletta netted two-quick fire goals with Yuri Messias firing them ahead with a spectacular strike from mid-pitch while Jackson Mendoza sealed the points soon after.
Maxuell Maia pulled a goal back in stoppage time for Gżira United.
Sliema Wanderers FC (1 – 1) Hibernians FC
In the Bottom 6, Sliema Wanderers and Hibernians took a point each following a 1-1 draw.
Kevin Halabaku put Hibernians ahead early on, but Uros Djuranovic equalised just before the break.
Birkirkara FC (1 – 0) Żabbar St. Patrick
Birkirkara were back to winning ways as a stoppage-time goal from Ronivan Santos earned them a 1-0 win over Żabbar St Patrick.
Tarxien Rainbows FC (2 – 2) Mosta FC
Meanwhile, Tarxien Rainbows staged a spirited comeback to earn a 2-2 draw against Mosta in a clash between the bottom two sides.
Tarxien started well but fell behind against the run of play when Prince Chizubor Emmanuel struck from distance, before Giancarlo Gonçalves doubled Mosta’s lead.
The Rainbows responded just before half-time through Nhayson’s header, and levelled early in the second half when Marko Musulin finished from close range.
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