Malta round-up: Pietà off the mark

Pietà Hotspurs FC registered their first win of the season when they overcame bottom-placed Marsa FC in the latest round of Maltese Premier League matches.

Woods strike
A strike by Ivan Woods in added time of the first half was enough for Pietà to obtain three points and a 1-0 win on Saturday. Meanwhile, two superb goals from Gilbert Agius saw Valletta FC bag another win to maintain their unblemished record at the top of the standings. Valletta had to fight hard for victory though as opponents Hamrun Spartans FC proved to be tough opponents with great organisation at the back and an inspirational goalkeeper in Daniel Dengaky.

Third straight win
Birkirkara FC beat Marsaxlokk FC 3-1 on Sunday to rack up their own third successive win and go level with Valletta on points. A Lucien Dronca penalty and a goal from Michael Galea put Birkirkara two ahead at the break. A Chucks Nwoko shot was then deflected into the net by Benneth Njoku to make it 3-0 before Uwa Ogbodo registered Marsaxlokk's first Premier League goal with five minutes remaining to give the promoted side some consolation.

Famous win
Another club new to the top flight, Mosta FC, registered their first points with a surprise 2-1 win against champions Hibernians FC. A splendid strike from Albert Busuttil gave Mosta the lead before Aaron Xuereb's 60th-minute header levelled matters. Jurandy Da Silva restored Mosta's advantage within two minutes and they held firm for a famous win, with goalkeeper Charles Sciberras producing a series of superb saves.

Sliema up to third
Sliema Wanderers FC now occupy third place after with a 5-2 win over Floriana FC on Monday night. Floriana took the lead on 24 minutes through Claude Mattocks but Sliema were level within a minute, Noel Turner crossing to Brian Said who beat Matthew Camilleri.

Goal feast
Sliema took the lead on 63 minutes after a Turner free-kick was fed by Joe Brincat to Massimo Grima whose powerful shot rocketed into the net. Brincat then set David Camilleri free for a third goal in the 80th minute and almost immediately after Danilo Doncic struck a fourth as Floriana's defence collapsed. A minute from time, Floriana did reduce the deficit through Trevor Cilia but Rupert Mangion added a fifth for Sliema in the dying seconds to put the seal on a highly satisfactory afternoon's work.