The Malta national rugby union team produced an impressive attacking performance to beat the Israel national rugby union team 50โ25 at the Tony Bezzina Stadium, holding off a strong second-half response from the visitors.
Coached by Phil Pretorius, Malta dominated the first half, racing into a commanding 36โ6 lead thanks to a series of well-worked tries and clinical finishing.
Chris Dudman opened the scoring with a penalty before Israel briefly levelled through Jack Scher. Malta then took control, with George Strickland powering over from a driving maul for the first try, converted by Dudman.
Although Israel reduced the gap with a drop goal, Malta finished the half strongly. John Connolly produced a fine individual effort to score, before Ryan Connolly added another try just before the break to give the hosts a 22โ6 advantage.
Malta continued their dominance early in the second half. Rory OโBrien added two tries in quick succession, including a remarkable solo effort from deep inside his own half, stretching the lead to 36โ6.
Israel fought back with tries from Maayan Levison and Yuri Oly, followed by another from Yishai Avrahami, narrowing the score to 36โ25 and putting Malta under pressure.
However, the hosts responded well. Rob Holloway broke through the defence to set up OโBrien for his third try of the match, before John Connolly sealed the result with a late score under the posts. Dudman added the conversions to take Malta to the 50-point mark.
The victory ensures Malta finish top of their group with 15 points and now await results from the remaining Menโs Conference fixtures to determine whether they will qualify for the promotion play-off later this year.
Sports Editor
Veteran Journalist
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