BOV Amateur League 2 MD3 Review: Marsaskala and Msida play out draw, Kalkara maintain perfect start

Marsaskala FC 2-2 Msida St Joseph FC - 26.10.2025 - Photo by Malta FA

BOV AMATEUR LEAGUE II
MATCHDAY 3

Kalkara United 1-0 Ta’ Xbiex
After 3 matchdays there is just one team left with maximum points, which is Kalkara United who secured a hard-fought victory over Ta’ Xbiex in a closely contested encounter at the Mosta Ground on Sunday. The only goal was scored late in the game after a competitive and evenly balanced contest which could have gone either way.

Miguel Perez-Jimenez, the scorer of the only goal of the game, returned to Kalkara and immediately left his mark after 12 minutes by beating three defenders before delivering a cross to Isaac Abela whose goal attempt was blocked by Blacks goalkeeper Carmelo Caruana. Ta’ Xbiex gradually grew into the game, dictating possession and exploiting spaces in midfield. Their patient build-up play led to a series of promising opportunities, though a lack of cutting edge in the final third prevented them from capitalising. In one of these attacks, towards the end of the half, Bledi Alla did well to serve Johan Grech who nearly beat Liam Lagana with an accurate header but the Kalkara custodian saved in two attempts.

The second half maintained its competitive edge, and Kalkara came within inches of breaking the deadlock in the 71st minute when substitute Ickerson Whitelaw unleashed a powerful half-volley that rattled the crossbar. Their persistence was rewarded when a defensive lapse from Ta’ Xbiex proved costly. The Ta’ Xbiex defence lost possession in the built-up deep inside their own box, with Perez Jimenez controlling well before calmly slotting home the winning goal, with two minutes regular time left. Ta’ Xbiex pressed for a late equaliser and came agonisingly close in stoppage time when a long throw-in caused confusion inside the Kalkara penalty area, and the ball fell kindly to Davies whose effort was well saved by Lagana. A priceless victory for the Greens who, on top of the three consecutive victories, still have to concede a goal in the 2025/26 BOV Amateur League II campaign.

Dingli Swallows 2-0 Siggiewi
At the Sirens Stadium, Dingli Swallows beat Siggiewi 2-0 thanks to two second half goals to rise to rank two in the standings. The team of coach Nicolai Caruana remain therefore unbeaten, registering their second consecutive league victory. Before the match, Siggiewi defender Clyde Borg was honoured by the club for his 100th career game.

Dingli had the first opportunity with a fine effort by Gabriel Sant that went just over the bar after 11 minutes. Another chance arrived courtesy of a low shot by Jurgen Gerada that was saved by young Venezuelan goalkeeper Oscar Guerrero just two minutes later, with the Swallows clearly in control of the game. The rest of the half was a cagey affair however, with Dingli maintaining the initiative but failing to create opportunities.

Not long after the change of ends, Dingli missed a glorious opportunity to move ahead when Sant smashed well over the bar from well inside the box. The Swallows finally took a deserved lead on 62 minutes when Mark Cutajar concluded successfully after Guererro had saved his first effort. Three minutes later, Ronaldinho Daley went on a probing run, ending with a strong low shot that slammed into the net. Dingli controlled the game with ease after that goal earning another valuable three points.

Santa Venera Lightnings 1-3 St George’s
Also at the Sirens Stadium, St George’s scored three within the first half hour to shake off the resistance of Santa Venera Lightnings with a solid display. Both teams won one and lost one in their opening two games and
were looking to make an impact after a mixed start to the season.

St George’s issued their first warning on seven minutes when a shot by Ryan Dalli slammed against the post while also Jamiu Hassan’s attempt hit the woodwork in the 14th minute. The Blues dominated and were awarded a penalty just a minute later but Matthew Gauci saw his effort saved by Samuele Duzzi Nulli in the Santa Venera goal.

The Bormlizi made amends when they scored two goals in quick succession courtesy of Kenneth Aquilina on 22 and 24 minutes. The first one of the lanky forward was a fine shot after an assist by Hassan whilst the second came from the kick off, an intelligent lob over a hapless Duzzi Nulli. The pioneers practically put the game to bed after 26 minutes with Dalli scoring a fine individual goal which left the Vendrizi shell-shocked.

This third goal clearly took the interest out of the game as the Cottonera side consolidated their advantage with relative ease. Santa Venera managed to pull one back on 56 minutes after a fine counter with substitute Andres Martinez concluding. St George’s missed a chance to restore their three-goal advantage on 66 minutes but after rounding the keeper, Hassan steered his effort wide. Although there were opportunities at both ends, it ended up as an important victory for St George’s who continued rising the table.

Rabat Ajax 2-0 Gharghur
At the Mosta Ground, Rabat Ajax secured a solid victory over a young Gharghur side thanks to two well-taken first half goals and an organised performance throughout. It was the second victory of the season for the Magpies, who consolidated their position in the ranking and can clearly be seen as one of the outsiders for promotion.

The team of coach Matthew Genius opened the scoring in the ninth minute when Victor Mbata received the ball just outside the penalty area, created space for himself and curled a superb effort into the top right corner which had the better of Gharghur goalkeeper Gianluca Pisani. Rabat doubled their advantage shortly before halftime as in the 41st minute, quickfire Larens Vella scored a great individual goal to send his side into the dressing rooms with a two-goal advantage.

In the second 45 minutes, Rabat came close to add a third goal early on, when neat interplay between Aidan Azzopardi and Zachary Tanti split the Gharghur defence open, sending Azzopardi through but his effort was well saved by Pisani. The latter played another pivotal role to keep the score respectable for his side. Ultimately, Rabat’s composure and clinical finishing proved decisive as they saw out the match to claim another three important points in their quest for the honours.

Marsaskala 2-2 Msida St Joseph
After defeats in their two opening games, Marsaskala got off mark with a hard-earned draw with Msida St Joseph in the last Sunday kick-off at the Centenary Stadium. Much to the disappointment of the team in orange, Msida’s equaliser was scored in stoppage time of the game but, in all fairness, was well-deserved as the Saints dominated most of the match.

Marsaskala FC 2-2 Msida St Joseph FC - 26.10.2025 - Photo by Malta FA

In the seventh minute it was 1-0 in favour of Msida when Dale Mifsud kicked home from a corner action, just minutes after the same player came close with a splendid header. Marsaskala however certainly did their part, creating some promising attacks but initially without troubling Msida goalie Jonathan Mallia too much. On 35 minutes, David Akindele’s acrobatic attempt sailed inches over crossbar for Msida and not much later, team-mate Lincoln Micallef came close with a long distance shot which went millimetres wide.

On 41 minutes, Marsaskala equalised when Federico Galea beat the off-side trap and coolly placed the ball behind Mallia against the net. Two minutes later, Marsaskala even took the lead when Galea headed excellently to the unmarked Leon El Yeferni who tapped home into the empty net. They could have even scored a third in stoppage time from an effective counter-attack, but Jake Cassar-Randich’s conclusion was too weak to trouble Mallia.

In the second half, Msida were desperately looking for an equaliser but initially without the desired effect. On 69 minutes, Msida substitute Zeyon Carter came close but his first-timer failed to find target while on 80 minutes, Mifsud blasted high from close-range with Marsaskala goalkeeper Craig Sultana beaten. Two minutes later, Yessous Camilleri’s header from a Kurt Zammit free-kick sailed inches over the bar while and a few minutes after, Akindele did well to slalom his way through the Marsaskala defence, serving Thomas Grima who incredibly missed in the six-yard box.

In the attack that followed on the other side, Galea should have scored a third Marsaskala goal with only Mallia to beat but produced an off-target attempt. This miss proved to be costly as in stoppage time, right after Akindele failed to find the net eye-to-eye with Sultana, it was Mifsud who scored the equaliser for the Saints, deep into stoppage time by blasting home from the edge of the area.

Mdina Knights 1-1 Ghaxaq
In the Sunday morning kick-off at the Sirens Stadium, high flyers Mdina Knights were held to a one-all draw with Ghaxaq, who like Marsaskala got off mark with their first point of the campaign. Certainly, two points lost for the team of coach Marco Buttigieg, who on the day were left to rue their missed opportunities.

Mdina came close to taking the lead after just six minutes when Jordan Vella steered a low ball towards an empty net but the Ghaxaq defence managed to clear off the line. Barely a minute later, Vella had a shot that hit the side netting as the Knights continued ramping up the pressure. In the 25th minute, Vella was again in the thick of the action, but his effort went just over the bar with Mdina now wasting too many opportunities. Veteran Giovanni Galea had a fine opportunity to put Mdina ahead, but his shot ended up just inches wide in stoppage time of the goalless first half.

Ghaxaq created their first real chance just after the break with a fine effort by substitute Rui Zammit that was saved for a corner which could have meant a shock lead for Ghaxaq. But it was Mdina who took the lead after 55 minutes when Galea released Jamie Lee Micallef who coolly lobbed over Ghaxaq goalkeeper Luke Attard, to the relief of the Mdina contingent. The Knights should have doubled on 69 minutes when Galea was completely in the clear but his shot went over and wide.

With six minutes regular time left, Ghaxaq managed to equalize when veteran Aaron Agius scored from the penalty spot with Ryan Theuma receiving his second yellow card in the built-up, leaving Mdina with ten players. It could have even ended worse for Mdina when Zammit came close in the dying minutes but Mdina goalkeeper Jacob Chircop St John saved well.