Six-goal Malta shine as qualifying continues
Saturday, April 6, 2013
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Malta recorded a 6-0 victory against Luxembourg on the second day of preliminary round action, Albania, Montenegro and the Faroe Islands the other teams to win in Groups A and B.
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Malta and Albania need only a point from their last fixtures in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup preliminary round to qualify for the group stage after recording comfortable victories on the second day of competition. Montenegro and the Faroe Islands are also sitting pretty in their section thanks to respective wins against Georgia and Lithuania.
The action concludes on Tuesday, with the top two in each group joining the 38 highest-ranked nations in the main qualifying draw at 14.00CET on 16 April.
Group A
Mini-tournament hosts Malta recorded the biggest win of the tournament so far, defeating Luxembourg 6-0. Four to the good just shy of the half-hour mark, Pierre Brincat's side extended their lead on 50 minutes when Nicole Buttigieg struck her second of the match. Dorianne Theuma added to her first-half penalty with the final goal of the game.
A delighted Brincat told UEFA.com: "Our plans worked to perfection. The players maintained their momentum throughout the course of the match and were, above all, very disciplined. We have to keep our feet on the ground and think now about our next match, against Latvia, on Tuesday."
Debutants Albania, who drew 1-1 with Malta in their opener, overcame Latvia 2-0 courtesy of a lob from Dafina Memedov and Furtuna Velaj's powerful 25-metre free-kick. Altin Rraklli's team finish against Luxembourg, who are on one point with Latvia.
Group B
Montenegro were set on their way against Georgia by Tamar Kvelidze's own goal eight minutes before the break. The dismissal of Khatia Chkonia with 19 minutes left further aided their cause, although it was not until added time that captain Marija Vukčević ensured Montenegro's first win in a women's senior international. Montenegro face hosts Lithuania next safe in the knowledge a draw will be sufficient to confirm their progress.
The Faroe Islands leapfrogged Georgia, their next opponents, into second place with a 1-0 victory against Lithuania, who are now out of contention. Rannvá Andreasen landed the decisive blow three minutes after coming off the bench.
