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Valletta, Balzan determined to win final honour of 2018

Published: 12-12-2018 15:30
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Valletta and Balzan will be vying to win the final domestic honour of 2018 when they meet in the BOV Super Cup on Republic Day (Thursday – December 13) at the National Stadium (kick-off 15.00).  Both teams are ultra-motivated to capture this honour as Valletta are chasing a treble after completing a league and cup double at the end of last season, while Balzan are determined to win their first major honour. Addressing a pre-match news conference at the Trophies Lounge on Wednesday, representatives of Valletta and Balzan spoke about their willingness to end the year on a high by lifting the BOV Super Cup. “We are in good form,” Danilo Doncic, the Valletta coach said. “We are coming from a run of 11 positive results, scoring 36 goals and conceding only two in the league. “As everyone knows, Valletta have a winning mentality. After winning the BOV Premier League and FA Trophy last season, we want to finish the year on a top note by making it a treble of honours. “This would be a nice achievement for the fans as well as for the club’s new investors.” Marko Micovic, the coach of Balzan, said his team are very motivated to win their first major trophy. “Last season, we came very close to winning the BOV Premier League and FA Trophy,” Micovic said. “Now we’re in this final and this gives us a chance to win a trophy. I believe that Balzan deserve to win an honour and we will be giving our all to lift the BOV Super Cup. "We respect Valletta, they are the slight favourites but we will be doing all we can to stop their positive run." Doncic has two injury concerns as defenders Ryan Camilleri and Joseph Zerafa are nursing injuries while Micovic has a full squad at his disposal. FINAL CHANCE Also present for the press conference were Valletta midfielder Rowen Muscat and Justin Grioli, the Balzan right-back. Muscat echoed Doncic’s comments, saying Valletta have a “win, win, win mentality” and therefore will be doing their utmost to win the BOV Super Cup. “All matches are important but this is a final, a one-off game,” Muscat said. “In the championship, you can recover if you have an off day but you don’t get a second chance in finals and this is why we have to be at our best to win this match.” Grioli said: “This is very important match for us. We were close to winning the league and FA Trophy in recent seasons but this hasn’t happened. “Now we have a chance to contest this final and there is an honour at stake. I think it’s high time we win the first major honour in the history of Balzan.” The BOV Super Cup is an annual clash between the current champions and FA Trophy holders but since Valletta completed a league and cup double, Balzan earned the right to contest this match – their first appearance in this showdown – on the back of their runner-up finish in last season’s championship.