Ghajnsielem F.C. edged Kercem Ajax 2-1 in a tricky encounter that even at this juncture of the season could have compromised the Blacks’ title aspirations. The numerous Blacks supporters at the Gozo Stadium had their eyes focused on one-time nemesis, Alex Simoncic, the transfer window signing from Nadur Y. The new number 5 in Ghajnsielem’s Starting XI, unfazed by the extra attention, did what he probably expected to do: he led the Blacks to victory.

Part of the Serbian midfielder’s repertoire will only be in display in the coming outings, when the forwards and the supporting midfielders get used to his superior vision and passing range. The team will only benefit from his leadership when he feels comfortable enough in the Club to fully assert himself.

Everyone in the Blacks’ camp, however, expected Simoncic to demonstrate his dead ball expertise from day one. And Simoncic did just that. He shot the Blacks into the lead with a goal direct from an angled free-kick to the left of Donald Gauci. He nearly scored from long range again direct from a free-kick but the ball just cleared the Kercem bar. In the second half, two mirror images of these two set pieces brought good saves out of the Kercem goalkeeper.

Simoncic also takes charge of most corner-kicks, including all the kicks taken from Ghajnsielem’s right. These corner-kicks had a certain menace to them and Ghajnsielem looked like they would convert one of these as well, which of course they did, when they needed the goal most. Ghajnsielem’s narrow lead had vanished twenty minutes into the second half. Joseph Debrincat’s delicate shot from distance soared over Joseph Grech then dipped behind him and into the net as the Ghajnsielem faithful watched in disbelief. Three minutes later Ghajnsielem won a corner-kick. Simoncic’s cross was met by Rodrigo Cariaga who beat Gauci with a glancing header.

This match was not all about Simoncic, but before we move on, there is one other intangible that the Serbian packed in his bag and brought with him to the Club. This is the extra gear. Ghajnsielem dominated the first half and were good value for their lead. They conceded the initiative to their opponents in the opening stages of the second half. Ghajnsielem were never seriously threatened by Kercem and seemed content to control proceedings rather than go on an all-out offensive, commit men forward in a bid to close the match. Debrincat’s equalizer was the cue for Simoncic to use the extra gear. Within two minutes of Kercem’s goal Simoncic exchanged passes with Thiago dos Santos and just like that the Brazilian was clear through face-to-face with Gauci. His shot thundered back into play off the Kercem crossbar. One minute later, it was Joseph Attard’s turn to go one-on-one with the Kercem goalkeeper. Attard gave Gauci too much time and the latter sped off his line to block Attard’s shot. Attard kept the ball in play. He set up Cariaga just inside the Kercem penalty area and the Argentinean’s shot was blocked to the corner which produced the winning goal. Ghajnsielem forced the issue and until they obtained what they wanted they did not relent. These are the new Blacks. Simoncic has made a sudden impact.

With their one goal lead restored, Ghajnsielem dropped down a gear and they were nearly made to pay when Kercem struck the post to the left of Grech in the 28th minute of the second half. The Blacks survived this scare. Although Ghajnsielem’s lead was not in serious jeopardy, Kercem, playing in blue shirts instead of their traditional horizontal green and white hoops, enjoyed territorial supremacy. This did not sit well with the supporters, most of whom were on the edge of the new blue seats installed on the Ghajnsielem side of the Gozo Stadium, shaking in fear of a nasty surprise, such as a late Kercem goal. Until Simoncic and company pull the chestnuts out of the fire with some late match heroics the Ghajnsielem supporters cannot be blamed for clamouring for more goals and bigger leads.

The relief in the stands at the end of the match was palpable. Ghajnsielem had negotiated their way past this fixture and can look forward to the two matches that close the second round with the knowledge that they will have their full squad available for selection. Coach Alex Spiteri had three important elements in his squad missing for this one: Franklee Galea and Kenneth Mercieca were serving their one-match ban and Glenn Cefai was out of the country.

David Debattista took Cefai’s spot in central defence, where he partnered the veteran Martin Cremona, himself a serious doubt before the match due to a knock. The shoo-in for G.F.A. most promising player and serious contender for G.F.A. footballer of the year, Ferdinand Apap, was as usual the stopper’s safety net. All three defenders played very well. Having said that their job became easier when one-time Black, Marcos Aurelio Ribeiro, left the match injured in the first half. Furthermore, the Blacks’ defence has failed for the 10th time in as many league matches to keep a clean-sheet. This is a worrying statistic for a Club dreaming of finishing the season high up there in the standings.

Brian Meilak and Simoncic were Ghajnsielem’s central midfielders. Stefan Azzopardi played wide right in place of Meilak. Joseph Buttigieg played wide left. The 3-4-3 (or 3-4-2-1) setup left Ghajnsielem’s flanks dangerously exposed and Kercem might have had more joy in this clash had they ganged up on Azzopardi or Buttigieg, both of whom had large swathes of Gozo Stadium to patrol on their own.

Joseph Attard joined Cariaga, now wearing number 10, behind dos Santos. Although every single Black played well in this match, and all can look back proudly on some fine personal moments, the attack was not as explosive as it has been in some of Ghajnsielem’s recent matches. Dos Santos in particular seemed subdued and he failed to reward the supporters with that piece of magic he seems to conjure in every outing. Credit must go to Kercem’s defence who operated on the premise that if you want to stop the Blacks, you had to stop dos Santos. They were determined to foil Ghajnsielem’s top scorer, and they succeeded, only to be undone by Simoncic and his set pieces.

The Blacks’ set-up was adventurous enough and led to a first half that saw Ghajnsielem manufacture three clear goal scoring opportunities in addition to the danger that came with the Simoncic set plays referred to above. Dos Santos should have done better all alone in front of Gauci, Cariaga nearly scored on another occasion and Attard hit the Kercem woodwork. Joseph Grech saved his team when a Kercem forward was sent through.

Ghajnsielem’s best moments came in the first half. They produced very little in the second half. Meilak and Simoncic tried to break the monotony with efforts from outside the penalty area. Their well-taken shots missed high. In terms of cleverly constructed manoeuvres one had to look towards Ghajnsielem’s right side. Cariaga worked his way to the bye-line in the tenth minute but Attard failed to connect with his low, hard cross. In injury time, Simoncic switched play to Robert Grima who had come on for Azzopardi in the 71st minute. Grima then served Cariaga down the right channel. Cariaga invited dos Santos to keep his 4-game scoring streak alive. The Brazilian’s shot was blocked. Moments later the referee blew the final whistle and sent the Blacks momentarily into a first-place tie with Victoria Hotspurs.

30 Joseph Grech, 3 Ferdinand Apap, 4 David Debattista, 5 Alex Simoncic, 6 Joseph Buttigieg (c), 7 Brian Meilak, 9 Joseph Attard, 10 Rodrigo Cariaga, 15 Martin Cremona, 17 Stefan Azzopardi, 18 Thiago dos Santos.