Versity Tal-Qroqq
vs Dingli Amateurs
Date: 2nd
February 2008
Venue: Paola
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Slick Versity return to winning ways
Dingli Amateurs 1
Versity Tal-Qroqq 3
(Half-time 1 –
0)
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Sponsors:
Mitsubishi Motors;
Philip Toledo IT Solutions; Ristorante Sottovoce – M’Skala
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This clash saw two teams who are targeting to finish third at least. Dingli were
coming from some positive outings chalking two wins of late whereas Versity were smarting themselves from two consecutive
defeats. A six-pointer encounter which eventually swayed Versity’s way after they displayed the better ideas and played
the better football. Camilleri showed his tactical acumen whereby he changed no less than three times the teams playing disposition
starting off with a 4-5-1, then shifting to 3-5-2 and finally to 4-4-2.
Camilleri reinserted the available Grima in central defence with Cutajar whereas
Caruana was deployed on the right and Salerno on the left. Baldacchino played in goal and he had a satisfactory
game. The central trio was made up of Cutajar, Bonnici and Bugeja (who supported the striker), whereas Calleja played on the
right with Mifsud on the left and as customary C Zammit played as the lone striker.
Versity seemed slow to take-off and their
link up play was poor. Some nervousness was seen on the ground and this did not contribute to ease things. Dingli opted to
play numerous long balls to try to bypass midfield and cause anxious moments to the Versity backline. Dingli found the opening
goal after around 10minutes when from a free kick some poor defending by Cutajar and Caruana allowed the Dingli striker to
head and loop the ball in the bottom left hand corner. Versity continued to huff and puff but midway through the half they
started to make their mark and from an interesting pass by C Zammit, Mifsud saw his shot skim the post. A few minutes later
Ferrante was fed by Bugeja. He advanced but instead of shooting on goal he opted to pass to C Zammit who had in the meantime
gone into an offside position. Apart from some sporadic long balls Dingli failed to threaten again but as the first half was
over they were the team who went out in the lead.
Camilleri was not too happy with this jittery
performance and he made a good half-time talk since the team was not showing their full potential. He opted to make two substitutions
by replacing Caruana with Sammut and Salerno with Sciberras.
As the second period got underway one could understand that the changes reflected a change in the disposition of the team
which now saw Sciberras-Ferrante-Grima in defence thus going from 4-5-1 to 3-5-2. This move reaped the desired dividends since
barely 4minutes from the restart had elapsed that Versity got the equalizer. Bonnici chested well, fed Calleja on the flank
who in turn whipped in a delightful cross which was met by Cutajar who neatly placed in the back of the net. This early equalizer
shocked Dingli whereas Versity went in search of the lead. Versity continued dictating play with their defense giving nothing
away, Bugeja and Cutajar directing the midfield tempo, Bonnici shielded the defense whereas the new entrant Sammut gave width
and pace on the flank. Calleja in turn continued to be a torn whenever in possession. Around the 20th minute of
the second half Cutajar turned from scorer to provider when he advanced saw the run of Mifsud and picked him up with a good
45meter across the pitch pass. Mifsud in turn just let fly a great shot from the edge of the box and he gave the Dingli goaler
no chance whatsoever with a great strike. Dingli tried to find their way back into the match and started to press hard but
to no avail. The closest they came was when from a cross from their right Baldacchino seemed hesitant but Grima was on hand
to clear off before the Dingli striker could connect and score. Versity pressed to find the third goal and hopefully kill
off any Dingli revival. C Zammit was played through by Mifsud but he somehow missed the target. However moments later he was
not to be denied when from a Bugeja pass he came face-to-face with the goaler and he calmly slotted the ball underneath his
body. Versity recovered well from the first half and they were now almost sure of the points. The final whistle brought to
an end an interesting match.
This was an important return to winning
ways for Versity which lays to rest the last two defeats. Apart from some moments when Versity did not play as well as they
should in the first half they dominated proceedings in second half and ran out merited winners. This win and performance should
provide them with a good platform for their upcoming and important fixtures with Mqabba and Tarxien.
Formation:
B Baldacchino [6.5]
– Satisfactory outing;
D Caurana [6.5] – Satisfactory;
D Grima [7.0] – Towering;
S Ferrante [7.0] – Marshalled defence well;
M Salerno [6.5] – Generous;
A Cutajar [8.0] – Classy and industrious;
P Bugeja [7.5] – Directed proceedings;
K Bonnici [7.5] – Tenacious;
I Calleja [7.5] – Sprightly on flank;
A Mifsud [7.0] – Great goal;
C Zammit [7.0] – Constant thorn;
Subs:
A Sammut [7.0] – Fitted well;
E
Sciberras [7.0] –
Solid game;
Unused Sub:
R Zammit
Coach & technical staff:
D Camilleri [8.5]
– He fielded the team well and was not afraid to make the necessary changes to turn defeat into victory. His changes
were spot-on whereby he managed through his substitutions to change things around.
Scorers:
A Cutajar; A Mifsud;
C Zammit;
Versity Player of the match: Adrian Cutajar
– He is fast becoming an important element in the midfield set-up with good displays. He crowned his game with a well-taken
goal linking up well to get the equalizer.
