St Joseph return to winning ways as Lincoln also keep momentum

Goals at either end of the match earned St Joseph’s all three points against Bruno Magpies on Friday evening.
On a night when most attention at Europa Sports Complex was fixed on the Netball World Youth Cup rather than football, the Blues bounced back from their first defeat of the season.

Rodriguez Moreno opened the scoring in the 11th minute, before Rosa Blanco sealed victory in the 87th with a late strike. Bruno Magpies, gritty throughout, threatened to cause another upset for the Blues at one stage.

St Joseph’s had stumbled the previous weekend against Mons Calpe in an ill-tempered finale that raised concerns over the behaviour of players and coaches after a post-match confrontation. Gibraltar FA officials were even called to repair damage to a broken changing-room door.

The clash with Bruno Magpies gave St Joseph’s the chance to return to winning ways and strengthen their position at the top of the table. Bruno, meanwhile, are still seen as contenders for a place in the final top six.

Elsewhere, Lincoln Red Imps continued their strong start to the campaign. With St Joseph’s already on 12 points from their first 15, Lincoln knew they could not ease off the pace in the title race.

A 3-1 lead at half-time against Lynx was extended by two more goals from the ever-present Tjay De Barr, securing a 5-3 victory and another three points.

Earlier in the week, Europa recovered from going a goal down to Manchester 62 to claim a 2-1 win, as the league begins to take shape with teams settling into their positions.

Saturday saw Mons Calpe face Glacis United. Fresh from their victory over St Joseph’s, Mons Calpe expected another strong performance, but this was a far different affair.

Glacis, who had managed just one win in three matches—against bottom-placed College 1975—set up defensively, packing players behind the ball and disrupting play.

It took until the final 10 minutes for Mons Calpe to break the deadlock, but Glacis’ high press ensured the lead was far from secure. Mons Calpe endured a nervy finish, with Glacis pushing forward but lacking the quality in the final third.

In stoppage time, Mons Calpe squandered a golden opportunity to extend their lead. Through on goal, the striker miscontrolled before attempting an ill-judged backheel trick, failing miserably with only the goalkeeper to beat.
Mons Calpe were to add their second through some excellent from Palacios with the referee blowing for the end of the match as it resumed from the centre. Mons Calpe with another win to their name, but with many questions still asked on their scope to finish in the top six after struggling against what is a troubled Glacis side.