That Francis Cauchi does not have chapters written on him for his heroics in goal for the Blacks is not his fault. Throughout his career, he had in front of him a group of players that took their defensive responsibilities seriously. However, the Blacks' impregnability at the back was also due in part to Francis abilities as a goalkeeper. A case in point was the famous friendly match that Ghajnsielem played against the Hamrun Spartans in the 1972/73 season. The expert Maltese did find their way occasionally through the Blacks rearguard only to find Francis Cauchi standing tall between the posts doggedly preserving the commendable 0-0 draw for the Blacks.

Following a great tradition of Blacks' keepers, including Michael Bugeja and Toni Buttigieg to mention two, Francis donned the number one jersey of the Club for the first time as a sixteen year old in the season-opening Galea Cup competition of 1966/67. The soft-spoken, slightly built youngster was not eased into the team like most of his minor league team-mates with whom he had just won the first minor league championship for the Club. He was pushed to the front upon Toni Buttigieg's emigration. His baptism of fire came in the two-match epic of a Galea Cup final against Victoria Hotspurs where the Blacks finally emerged victorious 3-1 in the replay of the final.

Francis Cauchi's career numbers are staggering. He registered 44 complete game shutouts, which translate to the fact that he did not concede a goal in 40% of his appearances in goal for the Blacks. He conceded 95 goals in total which works out to less than one goal per match (0.86), and well less than the historic rate for all the Club's goalkeepers of just over one goal a game (1.07). The 1969/70 season was his best. He registered 10 shutouts from sixteen appearances, conceded only 3 goals in eight league matches and 7 in total, and conceded two goals in any one match only once. As a matter of fact, in his appearances in the five championship seasons, he conceded two goals on only four occasions from 62 matches played--he was never beaten three times in one match during that time.

Injury to Francis twice forced the Club to look for an emergency replacement. He had to come out in the Galea Cup final loss of the 1970/71 season. He went on to play only a handful of matches that season, with Toni Buttigieg seeing most of the action. Then in the 1973/74 season he suffered injury early on and Wistin Sciberras was brought in. Francis made a second half appearance in the historic match against Hereford United and acquitted himself well with some difficult saves. It is remarkable that on the two occasions that Francis Cauchi lost his starting role in net, he did not rock the boat upon his return. He quietly assumed a back-up role and cheered the team on. He was rewarded for his team spirit because by attaining the objective of five consecutive championships the players that were on the field of play on that fateful day in June 1974 made sure that they along with Francis would gain football immortality.

Although he made an emergency appearance in 1980/81, Francis effectively retired from football in the 1974/75 season after appearing in a handful of matches. So ended Francis Cauchi's contribution to Ghajnsielem Football Club. Mr Cauchi's service to Ghajnsielem did not end there. Francis has been the mayor of Ghajnsielem since the inception of the local council in 1994. The popular mayor has been elected to the Local Council with the highest number of votes in each election since and has been chosen as mayor by his fellow councilors on each occasion.

Numbers Breakdown