Under 17s Comprehensively Beaten

by Jonathan Spiteri - 21st October 2012

Birkirkara Under 17s tasted their first defeat of this current campaign when they were comprehensively beaten 5-0 at the Luxol Ground by Paola Hibs, who deserved their victory, although the result might indicate that it was just one way traffic.

The Stripes seemed to have started on a positive note, matching their opponents in all departments but, midway through the first half a ball lost in the middle of the park led to the Black and Whites to open the score. One must also mention thet either side of the opening goal, the Birkirkara goalkeeper distinguished himself with two excellent saves.

This goal did not seem to dampen our boys' spirits as they kept sharing possession and were dangerous when one of the forwards miscued his shot with only the Paola Hibs number 1 to beat. When everyone was expecting the half to end with a minimum deficit, our defence failed to clear a ball from their area and the opposition took advantage to double the lead. It was a really sloppy goal to concede, and also at a very delicate time.

Mr Glumac used the half time break to explain what was wrong and what had to be done in order to get back into the match. His speech resulted in a more determined approach and the Yellow/Reds started testing the Hibs custodian with a number of good attempts from outside the box. As the team pushed forward with the aim of reducing the gap, Hibs used the counter attack weapon to perfection as, while possibly starting from an offside position, their forward advanced and after the first attempt was blocked, he still managed to make it 3-0. This goal was a heavy blow for Birkirkara, who still tried to get at least a consolatio goal, bu never really managed to gather some kind of momentum.

Late on, Hibs managed to add two more goals that made the score look as if there was only one team on the playing field. This was surely not the case, even though Paola Hibs seemed a better unit and well disciplined.
The players will surely have to forget this game as soon as possible, but on the other hand remember what was wrong in order not to repeat them.

Mr Glumac was obviously disappointed with the outcome of this match. Still he feels that nothing is lost yet and has faith in this team. “Altogether we will take this game as a lesson and also as a challenge in our preparation for upcoming matches. We will stay united and eager to prove ourself that this was just a one-off game that happens to all teams.”

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