2018–19 Maltese Premier League

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Maltese Premier League
Season2018–19
Dates17 August 2018 – 5 May 2019
ChampionsValletta
(25th title)
RelegatedSt. Andrews
Qormi
Pietà Hotspurs
Champions LeagueValletta
Europa LeagueHibernians
Gżira United
Balzan
Matches played182
Goals scored495 (2.72 per match)
Top goalscorerTaylon Nicolas Correa (18 goals)[1]
Biggest home winValletta 6–0 Qormi
(21 September 2018)[2]
Biggest away winTarxien Rainbows 0–7 Valletta
(8 December 2018)[3]
Highest scoringTarxien Rainbows 0–7 Valletta
(8 December 2018)[3]
All statistics correct as of 4 May 2019.

The 2018–19 Maltese Premier League was the 104th season of top-flight league football in Malta. The season began on 17 August 2018 and ended in April 2019. Defending champions Valletta won their 25th title, following a penalty shootout win against Hibernians in a championship decider match.[4]

Teams[edit]

class=notpageimage|
Location of teams in 2018–19 Maltese Premier League

Lija Athletic and Naxxar Lions were relegated after they finished thirteenth and fourteenth the previous season.[5] They are replaced by Qormi and Pietà Hotspurs, the 2017–18 Maltese First Division champions and runners-up respectively. Tarxien Rainbows retained Premiership status by defeating Żejtun Corinthians in a play-off decider.[6]

Team In league since City Training Stadium Capacity
Balzan 2011–12 Balzan St. Aloysius Sports and Recreational Complex 100
Birkirkara 1990–91 Birkirkara Mġarr Ground 0
Floriana 1986–87 Floriana Independence Arena 0
Gżira United 2016–17 Gżira Gżira Football Ground 0
Ħamrun Spartans 2016–17 Ħamrun Victor Tedesco Stadium 6,000
Hibernians 1945–46 Paola Hibernians Ground 2,968
Mosta 2011–12 Mosta Charles Abela Memorial Stadium 600
Pietà Hotspurs 2018–19 Pietà Trinity Stadium
Qormi 2018–19 Qormi Thomaso Ground 500
Senglea Athletic 2017–18 Senglea Ta' Qali National Stadium 17,797
Tarxien Rainbows 2008–09 Tarxien Tony Cassar Sports Ground 1,000
Sliema Wanderers 1984–85 Sliema Tigne Sports Complex 1,000
St. Andrews 2015–16 St. Andrew's Luxol Stadium 800
Valletta 1944–45 Valletta Sirens Stadium 600

Personnel and kits[edit]

Team Manager Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
Balzan Malta Jacques Scerri Joma Investors Mutual Limited
Birkirkara Malta John Buttigieg Adidas McDonald's
Floriana Italy Guido Ugolotti Joma Scotts Supermarket, Guess?
Gżira United Malta Jesmond Zerafa Joma Jeep
Ħamrun Spartans Italy Giovanni Tedesco Sportika SA
Hibernians Italy Stefano Sanderra Joma Bezzina
Mosta England Mark Miller Macron Dimbros, Nilmar
Pietà Hotspurs Malta Ramon Zammit Nike Famalco.net
Qormi Malta Matthew Psaila Macron
Senglea Athletic Italy Enzo Potenza Macron Palumbo
Sliema Wanderers Italy Stefano Maccoppi Adidas DIZZ, DSM Sports
St. Andrews Malta Michael Woods Macron
Tarxien Rainbows Malta Jose Borg Erreà Cassar Ship Repairs
Valletta Malta Gilbert Agius (caretaker) Joma Iniala
  • Additionally, referee kits are made by Adidas, sponsored by TeamSports and FXDD, and Nike has a new match ball.

Venues[edit]

 Ta' Qali Ta' Qali Paola Hamrun
Ta' Qali National Stadium Centenary Stadium Tony Bezzina Stadium Victor Tedesco Stadium
Capacity: 16,997 Capacity: 3,000 Capacity: 2,968 Capacity: 1,962

Managerial changes[edit]

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Replaced by Date of appointment
Ħamrun Spartans Malta Jacques Scerri Mutual consent 31 May 2018[7] Pre-season Italy Giovanni Tedesco 31 May 2018[7]
Hibernians Malta Mario Muscat
Malta Neil Zarb Cousin 		End of caretaker 4 July 2018[8] Italy Stefano Sanderra 4 July 2018[8]
Senglea Athletic Malta Steve D'Amato End of contract 30 June 2018 Italy Bruno Russo 17 July 2018
Floriana Argentina Nicolás Chiesa Sacked 27 August 2018[9] 12th Belgium Luís Oliveira 29 August 2018[10]
Senglea Athletic Italy Bruno Russo Sacked 15 September 2018[11] 13th Italy Enzo Potenza 20 September 2018[11]
Qormi Malta Brian Spiteri Resigned 6 November 2018[12] 13th Malta Matthew Psaila
Floriana Belgium Luís Oliveira Sacked 14 November 2018[13] 9th Italy Guido Ugolotti 14 November 2018[14]
Mosta Italy Enrico Piccioni 16 November 2018[15] 12th England Mark Miller 22 November 2018[16]
Sliema Wanderers Malta John Buttigieg 26 January 2019[17] 6th Italy Stefano Maccoppi 11 February 2019[18]
Balzan Serbia Marko Mićović Resigned 3 February 2019[19] 6th Malta Jacques Scerri 5 February 2019[20]
Gżira United Malta Darren Abdilla 12 February 2019[21] 3rd Malta Jesmond Zerafa 12 February 2019[21]
Birkirkara Malta Paul Zammit 26 March 2019 7th Malta John Buttigieg 18 April 2019[22]
Valletta Serbia Danilo Dončić 8 April 2019[23] 1st Malta Gilbert Agius (caretaker) 8 April 2019[23]

League table[edit]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Valletta[a] (C) 26 18 4 4 61 18 +43 58 Qualification for the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League
2 Hibernians[a] 26 18 4 4 54 27 +27 58 Qualification for the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League
3 Gżira United 26 13 11 2 42 21 +21 50
4 Ħamrun Spartans 26 12 10 4 35 20 +15 46
5 Sliema Wanderers 26 13 6 7 37 26 +11 45
6 Balzan 26 12 7 7 41 31 +10 43 Qualification for the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League[b]
7 Birkirkara 26 12 3 11 33 26 +7 39
8 Floriana 26 9 5 12 28 25 +3 32
9 Mosta 26 7 8 11 30 45 −15 29
10 Tarxien Rainbows 26 8 2 16 29 58 −29 26
11 Senglea Athletic 26 7 5 14 33 46 −13 26
12 St. Andrews (R) 26 7 3 16 25 45 −20 24 Qualification for the Relegation Play-Offs
13 Qormi (R) 26 6 2 18 25 51 −26 20 Relegation to the 2019–20 Maltese First Division
14 Pietà Hotspurs (R) 26 3 4 19 25 59 −34 13
Source: Malta Football Association
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Play-offs (only if needed to decide champions, teams for relegation or teams for UEFA competitions).[24]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Valletta and Hibernians finished equal on points, and a championship play-off to determine the winner was won by Valletta
  2. ^ Balzan qualified for the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League as the 2018–19 Maltese FA Trophy winners

Results[edit]

Home \ Away BAL BIR FLO GŻI ĦAM HIB MOS PIE QOR SEN SLI STA TAR VAL
Balzan — 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–0 4–2 1–2 2–1 0–2 2–0 1–2
Birkirkara 1–0 — 0–0 1–2 0–1 2–3 1–2 3–0 2–1 2–3 2–0 2–0 2–0 0–3
Floriana 0–0 0–2 — 0–1 1–1 0–1 1–0 1–2 0–1 4–1 0–1 0–1 4–0 2–0
Gżira United 3–0 1–1 1–0 — 0–0 3–2 3–3 5–2 1–0 3–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 0–0
Ħamrun Spartans 1–1 2–1 2–0 1–1 — 1–1 0–1 3–2 2–1 1–0 0–0 1–0 3–0 1–1
Hibernians 5–1 2–1 0–2 1–0 2–1 — 1–1 2–1 1–3 2–0 2–2 2–0 5–0 1–2
Mosta 0–0 0–3 3–3 1–1 0–0 0–4 — 3–2 2–0 0–3 1–2 1–3 3–1 0–1
Pietà Hotspurs 0–3 1–2 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 3–1 — 0–2 1–1 0–3 3–1 0–3 0–4
Qormi 1–3 1–0 1–3 1–4 0–2 1–2 1–1 2–2 — 1–0 2–3 0–2 1–2 1–2
Senglea Athletic 0–5 0–2 0–1 0–1 2–2 0–2 0–2 2–1 4–0 — 0–2 5–0 1–2 1–5
Sliema Wanderers 1–3 0–1 1–1 0–2 2–1 0–1 3–1 2–1 2–0 0–0 — 1–1 3–1 3–0
St. Andrews 0–1 2–0 3–0[a] 1–0 0–3 1–2 1–1 3–3 0–2 1–2 0–2 — 1–5 0–4
Tarxien Rainbows 1–3 0–2 0–3 1–4 2–1 2–4 0–2 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–2 2–1 — 0–7
Valletta 4–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–2 5–0 3–0 6–0 3–3 2–0 1–0 1–0 —
Source: Malta Football Association
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
For upcoming matches, an "a" indicates there is an article about the rivalry between the two participants.
Notes:
  1. ^ St. Andrew's were awarded a 3–0 win after the Malta Football Association's Protests Board upheld their protest as Floriana didn't have 11 homegrown players in their squad. Originally, the match ended in a 0–0 draw.[25]

Positions by round[edit]

The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards.

Leader and 2019–20 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round
2019–20 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round
2019–20 UEFA Europa League preliminary round
Relegation play-offs
Relegation to First Division
Team ╲ Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526
Valletta14141064332233233111221112111
Hibernians62695553322121222112221222
Gżira United14111111111312333333333333
Ħamrun Spartans35257776566654644456544444
Sliema Wanderers21533224444546777644465555
Balzan87322445655477566577776656
Birkirkara53746867777765455765657777
Floriana1112111196881091010899991098888888
Mosta12848991012121212121111111112889999999
Tarxien Rainbows13697101011109108891088891010101010101010
Senglea Athletic1013141414141414141414141413131211121212111111111111
St. Andrews41012121211998899108101010111111121212121212
Qormi7981011131313131313131314141414131413131314131313
Pietà Hotspurs911131313121211111111111212121313141314141413141414
Updated to match(es) played on 27 April 2019. Source: Scoresway

Championship play-off[edit]

At the end of the season, Valletta and Hibernians finished off equal on 58 points; in the last matchday, Valletta were few minutes away from winning the title as they were leading 1–0 against Ħamrun Spartans, but a goal in stoppage time levelled the match.[26] Hibernians had a convincing 5–1 win over Balzan to force a championship decider to be played between the two on 4 May.[27]

4 May 2019 Valletta 2–2 (a.e.t.)
(4–2 p)		HiberniansTa' Qali
16:30 CEST
Report
Stadium: Ta' Qali National Stadium
Attendance: 9,544
Referee: Malcolm Spiteri
Man of the Match: Taylon Nicolas Correa (Hibernians)
Penalties

Relegation play-offs[edit]

A play-off match took place between the twelfth-placed team from the Premier League, St. Andrews, and the third-placed team from the First Division, St. Lucia, for a place in the 2019–20 Maltese Premier League. St. Lucia became the first First Division club to win a Premier League play-off, thereby booking a place in next season's Premier League for the first time in their history.[28]

5 May 2019 St. Andrews (1)1–4 St. Lucia (2) Paola
16:00 CEST
Report
  • Patrick Jean 10', 75' (pen.)
  • Jackson Mendonza 17', 60'
 Stadium: Hibernians Stadium
Referee: Etienne Antoine Mangion

Season statistics[edit]

Top goalscorers[edit]

As of 5 May 2019[1]
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Brazil Taylon Nicolas Correa Hibernians 18
2 Italy Mario Fontanella Valletta 17
3 Nigeria Haruna Garba Gżira United 12
4 Montenegro Bojan Kaljević Valletta 11
Brazil Tiago Adan Hibernians
Malta Jake Grech Hibernians
7 Serbia Andrija Majdevac Balzan 10
Argentina Miguel Alba Valletta
9 Malta Alfred Effiong Balzan 9
10 Morocco Younes Bnou Marzouk Sliema Wanderers 8
Italy Kevin Tulimieri Ħamrun Spartans
Argentina Augusto Cáseres Senglea Athletic

Hat-tricks[edit]

Player[29] For Against Result Date
Jamaica Kevaun Atkinson St. Andrews Mosta 3–1 18 August 2018
Montenegro Bojan Kaljević Valletta Senglea Athletic 5–1 28 September 2018
Nigeria Haruna Garba Gżira United Balzan 3–0 27 October 2018
Italy Mario Fontanella Valletta Tarxien Rainbows 7–0 8 December 2018
Brazil Diego Venancio Senglea Athletic St. Andrews 5–0 14 March 2019
Cameroon Justin Mengolo Gżira United Pietà Hotspurs 5–2 30 March 2019
Brazil Taylon Nicolas Correa Hibernians Balzan 5–1 27 April 2019

Awards[edit]

Monthly awards[edit]

Month Player of the Month
Player Club
August[30] Italy Michele Paolucci Tarxien Rainbows
September[31] Montenegro Bojan Kaljević Valletta
October[32] Italy Mario Fontanella Valletta
November[33] Jamaica Martin Davis St. Andrews
December[34] Brazil Taylon Correa Hibernians
January[35] Argentina Augusto Cáseres Senglea Athletic
February[36] France Wilfried Domoraud Ħamrun Spartans
March[37] Morocco Younes Bnou Marzouk Sliema Wanderers
April/May Malta Jake Grech Hibernians

Annual awards[edit]

Award[38] Winner Club
MFA Footballer of the Year Malta Andrei Agius Hibernians
Coach of the Year Italy Stefano Sanderra Hibernians
Young Player of the Year Malta Matthew Guillaumier Birkirkara
Foreign Player of the Year Argentina Miguel Alba Valletta
Best Goal Award Malta Jurgen Degabriele (vs Floriana) Hibernians
Best Fans Award Valletta

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "BOV Premier League Top Scorers". Malta Football Association. Archived from the original on 16 August 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
  2. ^ "Valletta 6 - 0 Qormi". Malta Football Association. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Tarxien R 0 - 7 Valletta". Malta Football Association. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
  4. ^ Camilleri, Valhmor; Lia, Gianluca (4 May 2019). "Valletta win 25th league title on penalties". Times of Malta. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  5. ^ "Live commentary: BOV Premier League relegation battle". Times of Malta. 20 April 2018.
  6. ^ Camilleri, Joanna (27 April 2018). "Tarxien Rainbows iżommu posthom fil-kampjonat BOV Premier" (in Maltese). TVM.
  7. ^ a b "Ħamrun appoint Tedesco as coach". Times of Malta. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Stefano Sanderra named new Hibernians coach". Times of Malta. 4 July 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  9. ^ "Floriana sack coach Chiesa". Times of Malta. 27 August 2018. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  10. ^ "Floriana appoint Lulù Oliveira as coach". Times of Malta. 29 August 2018. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  11. ^ a b Lia, Gianluca (20 September 2018). "Potenza named new Senglea coach". Times of Malta. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  12. ^ Attard, Mark (6 November 2018). "Futbol lokali: Brian Spiteri jirriżenja minn kowċ ta' Qormi FC" (in Maltese). TVM. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  13. ^ "Floriana and Luis Oliveira part ways". Floriana F.C. 14 November 2018. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  14. ^ Camilleri, Valhmor (14 November 2018). "Ugolotti named as new Floriana coach after Oliveira dismissal". Times of Malta. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
  15. ^ "Enrico Piccioni no longer Mosta FC coach". MaltaFootball.com. 16 November 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  16. ^ "Mark Miller is new Mosta FC coach". MaltaFootball.com. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  17. ^ Falzon, Chris (26 January 2019). "Sliema Wanderers u John Buttigieg itemmu r-relazzjoni ta' bejniethom" (in Maltese). TVM Sport. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
  18. ^ Camilleri, Valhmor (11 February 2019). "Sliema name Maccoppi as new coach". Times of Malta. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  19. ^ Camilleri, Valhmor (3 February 2019). "Micovic steps down as Balzan coach". Times of Malta. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  20. ^ Camilleri, Valhmor (5 February 2019). "Scerri appointed Balzan coach". Times of Malta. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  21. ^ a b Camilleri, Valhmor (12 February 2019). "Zerafa replaces Abdilla at Gżira United". Times of Malta. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  22. ^ Galea, Ayrton (18 April 2019). "Birkirkara FC appoints John Buttigieg as their new Head Coach". Birkirkara F.C. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  23. ^ a b Camilleri, Valhmor (8 April 2019). "Doncic resigns as Valletta coach". Times of Malta. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  24. ^ "Premier League 2018/2019 - Season rules". Scoresway. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  25. ^ "Malta FA Protests Board decision". Malta Football Association. 28 December 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  26. ^ "Drama as last-minute equaliser forces Hibs vs Valletta championship decider". Times of Malta. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  27. ^ "Updated: Valletta, Hibs to play title decider on Saturday". Times of Malta. 28 April 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  28. ^ Busuttil, Antoine (5 May 2019). "Historic promotion for Santa Lucia after fine 4-1 win over St. Andrews in Play-Off". MaltaFootball.com. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  29. ^ "BOV Premier League 2018/19". MaltaFootball.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  30. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Tarxien's Michele Paolucci wins first award for 18/19 season". Bank of Valletta. 19 September 2018. Archived from the original on 21 October 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  31. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Valletta's Kaljevic wins September award". Bank of Valletta. 26 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.[permanent dead link]
  32. ^ "BOV Player of the Month – October 2018 - Fontanella lands Valletta's Second award this season". Bank of Valletta. 8 November 2018. Archived from the original on 9 November 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  33. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Martin Davis (St Andrews FC) wins November award". Bank of Valletta. 7 December 2018. Archived from the original on 27 December 2018. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  34. ^ "BOV Player of the Month Hibernians' Taylon wins award for December 2018". Bank of Valletta. 11 January 2019. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  35. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Senglea's Caceres wins January Award". Bank of Valletta. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2019.[permanent dead link]
  36. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Hamrun's Domoraud wins February Award". Bank of Valletta. 14 March 2019. Archived from the original on 10 September 2020. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  37. ^ "BOV Player of the Month - Sliema's Marzouk wins March Award". 16 April 2019. Archived from the original on 10 September 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  38. ^ "Hibs defender Agius named MFA Footballer of the Year". Malta Football Association. 25 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.

External links[edit]

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