There is a lot about the
football club that for the
longest time made it the pride
of Għajnsielem. The tradition,
the Blacks mystique, the
trophies, the dynasty or
monopoly over the first
division, its legends and most
recently the club premises and
location. It is understandable
that the public's identification
with the Club was at its peak in
the seventies, when the players
and coach had the status of
celebrities. The Club too was
well aware of its own proper
place in the hierarchy of
football in Gozo. This sense of
self-respect emanated not just
from the well-documented
exploits on the field of play,
but from the administrative
prowess of the Club.
The friendly match against
Hereford United epitomizes this
organizational ability. The Club
carved another first by being
the first Gozitan Club to face
international opposition. The
team gave a creditable
performance and only went down
2-4 to this team competing in
the then Third Division of the
English Football League.
Hereford made it as high as the
then Second Division two seasons
later.
The match was played on a
Tuesday (then the last day of
Carnival and a half-holiday in
Malta) in front of a sizeable
crowd at the Silver Jubilee
Ground. With the obvious
exception of the Club's
supporters, the people in
attendance at the Ground had two
things on their mind: to watch
Hereford and to witness the rare
spectacle of our Blacks getting
a royal hiding. It is with great
satisfaction that we note that
these people left the Ground
disappointed because the score
line was not at all to their
liking. The constant cheering by
Gozitan supporters of the
visiting, foreign team did not
go unnoticed by the Club. The
antagonism that the whole league
felt towards Għajnsielem was
understandable as history shows
that the very best always
inspire envy in others, however,
that Gozitans unite in their
support for the first foreign
team to visit Gozo and against
the club that took upon itself
the responsibility to uphold the
honour and pride of this island
so that these visitors could
have an opponent was simply
unbelievable.
Hereford adapted immediately to
the hard surface, and passed the
ball around with ease. They were
clearly superior to the Gozitan
champions technically,
athletically and consequently,
also tactically. The match was
action packed. First Hinch at
one end, then Leli Refalo at the
other came close to opening the
score. After fifteen minutes,
Refalo was again unfortunate not
to score when his low shot was
inches wide. Sciberras saved
well from Evans. Għajnsielem's
retaliation was swift. Vincent
Cutajar dribbled past Emery and
passed the ball to Alfred
Azzopardi who shot low into the
net, to put the surprising
Blacks in the lead. Għajnsielem
did not enjoy this lead for long
because Hereford scored twice in
the space of five minutes, first
through Hinch, then Gane. Young
Frank Xuereb, not the least
over-awed by the occasion, burst
his lungs in the first half,
playing the kind of two-way
football that was years ahead of
its time.
In the second half, Hereford
resumed their pressure and
Francis Cauchi had to make a
punching save. Then the Blacks
almost leveled the score, first
when Toni Cauchi shot into the
side netting, then when Vincent
Cutajar alone in front of
Hughes shot high. Hereford
punished the Blacks for these
missed chances and scored
another quick brace of goals
through Lee and Evans, one
minute apart from each other.
Determined to give everything
they had in this match,
Għajnsielem kept trying and were
rewarded for their efforts in
the 27th minute. Vincent Cutajar
took possession in his own half
and went on a run that took him
past two opponents, he passed to
Loreto Galea, who in turn pushed
the ball to Cauchi on the right.
Cauchi broke loose of Emery and
beat Hughes with a low shot.
Just before the final whistle,
Francis Cauchi denied Lee with a
difficult save.
This was a fine showing by
Għajnsielem and a respectable
score was achieved. The
following day, Hereford beat
Hibernians, runners-up in the
M.F.A. first division, 3-1. It
was the terrific organization of
the match eclipsing that of the
Maltese, however, that gave the
Club reason to be proud. When
Hereford had first indicated to
the M.F.A. that they wished to
play friendly matches while on
vacation here, Għajnsielem
immediately expressed their
interest in hosting the English
club. However, the M.F.A. did
not take the Club seriously. The
G.F.A. was contacted and it was
originally planned that a Gozo
selection would be assembled to
take on the famous giant-killing
club. With only three days
before the scheduled fixture,
the G.F.A., clearly in
difficulty, anxious to avert an
embarrassment approached the
Club and asked it to play
against Hereford.
The Club, although still
smarting from the original snub,
did not waste this opportunity
to make history yet again. The
committee worked feverishly to
publicize the match, to work out
the match logistics and to
formulate an agenda for the
English guests. From the moment
the Hereford contingent stepped
on Gozitan soil, in the morning
of May 14, to the moment they
stepped on the ferry late in the
afternoon of that same day,
everything went according to
plan. The guests were shown the
best of Gozitan hospitality, if
not the whole of Gozo, which was
not done due to the time
constraints. Indeed, Hereford
United club officials remarked
to our committee at the end of
their stay that they were truly
impressed not only by our team's
competitiveness but by the
manner in which the hastily
arranged visit was organized.
Needless to say all of this
further fuelled the Club's
ambition to participate on a
larger stage.
