Żabbar St Patrick 2–2 Tarxien Rainbows

Micallef 37’, Cejas 73’ | Nhayson 48’, Santos 64’

Żabbar St Patrick and Tarxien Rainbows played out an entertaining 2-2 draw, sharing the spoils in a match filled with momentum swings, chances, and late drama.

Żabbar made two changes from their recent win over Valletta, with Jake Micallef and Kean Scicluna replacing Zean Leonardi and Ryan Scicluna.
Tarxien, still looking to respond after their defeat to Mosta, introduced Miguel D’Alessandro, Erico Junior, Luke Anthony Borg, and Wallisson Bahia in place of Andreas Vella, Marcus Grima, Kwasi Donsu, and Jai Quitongo.

Żabbar threatened early. On 13 minutes, Mario Fontanella forced Andrea Cassar into a difficult save, with the rebound pushed behind for a corner. Moments later, Micallef headed over from the resulting set-piece.

Fontanella remained heavily involved, assisting Luc Zongo for a header that went wide, before Vinicius De Paiva forced another save from Cassar.

The Saints broke the deadlock on 37 minutes. A loose ball fell kindly to Jake Micallef, who struck low from inside the area to put Żabbar 1–0 ahead.

Strong Zabbar fightback

The hosts had further chances to double their advantage, but their momentum was halted when Brian Gambarte was sent off on the stroke of half-time for elbowing Nhayson.

Despite being a man down, Żabbar’s lead lasted only three minutes into the second half. A marauding run down the right from Erico Junior ended with a precise pass to Nhayson, who calmly slotted past Jonathan Grech to make it 1–1.

Tarxien turned the match around on 64 minutes when Tiago Santos rose highest to head home from a corner, giving the Rainbows a 2–1 advantage.

But Żabbar showed resilience. In the 73rd minute, Pedro Cejas met a cross from the left and finished confidently to restore parity.

The Rainbows thought they had snatched the winner deep into stoppage time when Andreas Vella headed in a Jai Quitongo delivery—but celebrations were cut short. After an FVS review, the goal was disallowed, leaving both sides to settle for a point.

Żabbar, despite playing almost an entire half with ten men, held firm, while Tarxien’s late frustration meant the contest ended justly balanced.