GŻIRA UTD.  0 : 1  LIJA / IKLIN

H.T.: 0-1

:: 08-Sep-2007 :: Luxol St. A. Stadium :: 09.00hrs. ::

 Comments from the Coach: "The first match of the new season started very well for the Lija/ Iklin Under 16 youths. The Greens managed to score in their very first attack, through the hard working Gilbert Simiana after the latter received an excellent pass from Ryan Muscat. This happened after just six minutes. Although Gżira had a lot of possession, they were never really threatening to the Lija goal and in fact Neil Mangion had a very easy game. In midfield, Joseph Pace worked hard and had a very good match. Lija could have easily increased their lead through David Attard, whose shot was fumbled by the Maroons' keeper, with the ball later hitting the post. Benjamin Cuschieri was also unlucky when he missed an incredible chance after misfiring the ball from a very good position. In the second half Ben Cuschieri had another good drive that just missed target while David Attard's insidious volley sailed over the bar. All in all, considering that it was the team's first league clash, it was a very positive result against a good team."

 Formation (Lija/Iklin): Neil Mangion [Gk] - Jeffrey Azzopardi - Jake Mangani - Benjamin Cuschieri - Gilbert Simiana - Darren Vella (C) - Ryan Muscat - Bernard Aquilina - Joseph Pace - David Attard - Dylan Formosa.

  LIJA / IKLIN  4 : 0  GĦAXAQ

H.T.: 3-0

:: 21-Sep-2007 :: Luxol St. A. Stadium :: 15.35hrs. ::

 Comments from the Coach: "This match was already won in the first half, as Lija/ Iklin scored three quick goals without a reply against a very nervous Għaxaq side. In this encounter, the team showed a good improvement on the game against Gżira United. Had the Lija/ Iklin players been more attentive for the off-side trap, they could have easily scored many more goals. Newcomer, Daniel Dimech scored two goals on his debut, one of them with a cool finish. The other goals came from Mario Bugeja on 15 minutes and David Attard, the latter converting a penalty awarded by the referee in the 67th minute. Mario Bugeja and Daniel Dimech linked very well considering it was just the first time that they were playing together. In the second period, the team's performance was less good than that of the first half but with the match as good as over, the Lija youths were more determined in not conceding any goals rather than inflicting further misery on the depleted Għaxaq side. The Southerners had a very bad match today during which no less than two of their players were sent off for separate infringements. Our defence, well marshalled by Darren Vella, managed to keep another clean sheet for the second successive league match. In midfield, David Attard and Ryan Muscat organised the team's forward play."

 Formation (Lija/Iklin): Neil Mangion [Gk] - Jake Mangani (Gilbert Simiana) - Jeffrey Azzopardi (David Agius) - Bernard Aquilina - Darren Vella (C) - Ryan Muscat - David Attard - Mario Bugeja - Joseph Pace - Daniel Dimech (Luke Micallef) - Dylan Formosa.

  LIJA / IKLIN  5 : 1  MARSA

H.T.: 4-0

:: 23-Sep-2007 :: St. Aloysius Ground :: 15.05hrs. ::

 Comments from the Coach: "This match resulted much easier than initially expected against a good Marsa side. Similar to what happened in the match against Għaxaq, the Lija/ Iklin Under 16 lads scored four goals in the first period which practically killed the game. The first goal was an own goal following a mêlée inside the area after a well taken David Attard corner. Soon after, Darren Vella scored the second goal for Lija/ Iklin. David Attard scored goal number three after finishing with a fine volley, while Mario Bugeja concluded a personal move with a brilliant drive to give Lija a four-goal lead before the break. Ryan Muscat made the score 5-0 in favour of the Greens after converting a penalty in the second half. The Red-Blues (Marsa) had a player sent off in the 59th minute. Unfortunately due to a lapse in concentration, the Greens conceded their first seasonal goal when off went a quick Marsa free-kick that took the Lija goal-keeper, Neil Mangion completely by surprise. Our defence was once again solid, but was also very efficient when clearing or moving the ball forward. Luke Micallef had an excellent match today, especially whenever he was in possession of the ball which he often moved forward intelligently. The boys played the ball much better than usual in this encounter, moving it around much better and quicker. Dylan Formosa and Jeffrey Azzopardi combined quite well on the left-hand flank too."

 Formation (Lija/Iklin): Neil Mangion [Gk] - Luke Micallef - Jeffrey Azzopardi - Bernard Aquilina (David Agius) - Darren Vella (C) - Ryan Muscat (Nicholas Vassallo) - David Attard - Mario Bugeja - Joseph Pace (Johan Bugeja) - Daniel Dimech (Jake Mangani) - Dylan Formosa (Gilbert Simiana).

  LIJA / IKLIN  2 : 1  ŻEJTUN COR.

H.T.: 1-1

:: 14-Oct-2007 :: St. Aloysius Ground :: 10.15hrs. ::

 Comments from the Coach: "Although Zejtun had lost their three matches they offered a very stiff opposition as the result shows. Our team sorely missed the influence of David Attard in midfield and lost possession very easily. Unfortunately our attackers had a day off and lost several good opportunities to score. On the other hand, goalkeeper Neil Mangion had a very good match and was undoubtedly our best player with several confident interventions. Our first goal was scored by an opportunist effort by Daniel Dimech. Zejtun equalised soon afterward when our team gifted them a foul from the touchline. Their centre forward rose very well to head home the resulting free kick. In the second half our team started to play better and took the lead from a Ryan Muscat direct free kick. We could have easily increased the lead soon afterwards, but Mario Bugeja hit wide from a very good position. All in all it was a fair result."

 Formation (Lija/Iklin): Neil Mangion [Gk] - Luke Micallef - Jake Mangani - Jeffrey Azzopardi (Gilbert Simiana) - Bernard Aquilina - Darren Vella (C) - Ryan Muscat - Mario Bugeja (David Agius) - Joseph Pace - Daniel Dimech - Dylan Formosa.

  GUDJA UTD.  1 : 4  LIJA / IKLIN

H.T.: 0-1

:: 21-Oct-2007 :: St. Aloysius Ground :: 10.15hrs. ::

 Comments from the Coach: "This match was characterised by the strong wind which made it impossible to play good football. Our team took the lead after 33 minutes  through an own goal after a scramble in the box. With the wind in our favour we  we had a lot of possession but we only had half decent chances. In the second half we played much better and in fact we managed to score three more goals. Joe Pace scored a fine volley after the Gudja keeper had made an excellent save on Mario Bugeja. The same Mario Bugeja added two further goals to seal the victory , the second one after an excellent run by Ryan Muscat. Gudja had momentarily reduced the margin to 3-1 after a misunderstanding between our central defenders."

 Formation (Lija/Iklin): Neil Mangion [Gk] - Luke Micallef - Jeffrey Azzopardi - Bernard Aquilina (David Agius) - Darren Vella (C) - Ryan Muscat (Nicholas Vassallo) - David Attard - Mario Bugeja - Joseph Pace (Johan Bugeja) - Daniel Dimech (Jake Mangani) - Dylan Formosa (Gilbert Simiana).

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