BALZAN 2NAXXAR LIONS 0 Balzan kept their FA Trophy bid on track after beating Naxxar Lions 2-0 with a brace from Alex De Paixao Alves, aka Lekao.
The first half was a drab affair with Balzan slightly the better team. On 20 minutes, Naxxar Lions captain Angus Buhagiar blocked the ball with his arm on the goal-line, leaving referee Matthew Degabriele with no option but to send him off. Bojan Kaljevic’s attempt from the spot was saved by Naxxar Lions’ Austrian goalkeeper Christoph Nicht. Balzan started well in the second half. Two minutes after the restart, Nicht turned away a strong shot by Paul Fenech. A Lepovic effort from just outside the box hit the crossbar on 54 minutes. Balzan’s dominance was partially interrupted when striker Alfred Effiong was dismissed for two cautions. Naxxar failed to take any advantage of Effiong’s sending-off as it was Balzan who struck twice in the final 10 minutes. With eight minutes remaining, Alves rounded off a good move by hitting an angled shot past Nicht. Naxxar had a goal disallowed for offside three minutes from time. Balzan’s Uros Ljubomirac missed a great opportunity but two minutes into stoppage time Alves scored his second to seal Balzan’s progress into the quarter-finals. ADAMOVIC WINS IT FOR BLUES ĦAMRUN SPARTANS 0SLIEMA WANDERERS 1 Sliema Wanderers overcame a tough hurdle as they beat fellow Premier League side Ħamrun Spartans 1-0 at the Hibernians Stadium. The match produced few scoring chances but Sliema prevailed thanks to Goran Adamovic’s goal five minutes from half-time. Adamovic scored with a glancing header after meeting Frenci Qeros’s corner from the right. The Spartans tried to make a reaction in the second half but they struggled to create scoring chances. Sliema had a good chance 17 minutes from time when Nicolae Milinceanu passed to Qeros on the edge of the area but the latter’s effort was stopped by Steve Sultana, the Spartans goalkeeper. The Spartans should have equalised when Alex Nilsson freed Faria who fired wide in front of Sliema goalkeeper Glen Zammit. There was also a late chance for Sliema but Qeros was denied by Sultana after having a clear run at goal. LIJA HIT BACK TO BEAT TARXIENTARXIEN RAINBOWS 1LIJA ATHLETIC 2 With a great collective effort, Lija Athletic beat fellow BOV Premier League strugglers 1-2 in the first match at the Centenary Stadium on Saturday. The first chances of the match came Tarxien’s way with strikers Ricardinho and Samba Tounkara (ex-Gżira) keeping the Lija rear guard busy with their forging runs. Tarxien took the lead on 27 minutes after winning a penalty following Leejoe Schembri’s rash challenge on Ayrton Azzopardi. Ricardinho made no mistake from the spot. The Brazilian hit the post in six minutes from half-time as the Rainbows remained the better side. Lija turned the match around in the second half. They equalised six minutes into the second half thanks to Ousmane Sidibe’s first-timer following a corner action. On the hour, Erjon Beu put Lija 2-1 up with a low-placed shot following a good attack. Both teams kept pressing forward with Beu missing another two good opportunities. Tarxien’s Ricardinho was sent off 11 minutes from time for a second yellow card. Five minutes from time, Tarxien substitute Matar Dieye missed a sitter with only the goalkeeper to beat. STRIPES WIN IN EXTRA-TIMEBIRKIRKARA 2SAN ĠWANN 1(after extra-time)Birkirkara had to fight harder than expected to secure their place in the quarter-finals of the BOOST Diesel FA Trophy as they needed an extra-time goal to see off the challenge of Division One side San Ġwann on Friday. The Saints stunned Birkirkara as they forged ahead on 12 minutes. Alan Borg’s through-ball released Godwin Blessing Henshaw who advanced and unleashed a superb shot past Birkirkara goalkeeper Kristijan Naumovski. Despite seeing more of the ball and creating a hatful of chances, Birkirkara had to wait until 18 minutes from the end to equalise. Jake Grech’s low free-kick from the left was not held by goalkeper Manuel Bartolo and Fernando Barbosa Pereira tapped the loose ball home. The match went into extra-time but Birkirkara sealed the deal before the end of the first half of extra-time. Carlos Alberto da Silva’s fine shot had the better of the San Ġwann goalkeeper. The draw of the BOOST DIesel FA Trophy quarter-finals will be made on Monday.