World Cup Qualifier, Greece 60 – Malta 4

A comprehensive 11–try win by Greece at the Glyka Stadium in Athens ensured that they finished top of European Group C – South, and will now face Norway in the play offs on neutral territory, most likely next spring. As in Ukraine the week before, the Greece captain, scrum half Jordan Meads was destroyer-in-chief, racing in for two early tries to set the tone and finishing with 20 points.

“It was a much more physical game than the score line suggests,” said Greece head coach Michail Chatziioannou. “We were better prepared than we had been against Ukraine and that showed. “We corrected our mistakes and mentally were stronger than them, we got momentum from the start and that accounted for the big result.”

Malta’s best spell came after a double penalty award, hooker Josh Caruana nipping over for an unconverted try and prop Dean Zammit could have narrowed the lead five minutes later but lost the ball in trying to crash over.

Disappointed Maltese head coach, James Camilleri commented: “We had a few players still learning and hopefully, next time we play, we will put on a better showing.”

GREECE 60  :  Dimosthenis Kartsonakis, Nikolaos Kourkakis, Alvaro Zota, Konstantinos Katsidonis, Ioannis Nake, Panteleimon Tsattalios, Jordan Meads, Stefanos Bastas, Nikolaos Bosmos, Ioannis Rousoglou, Mitchell Zampetides, Robert Tuliatu, Terry Constantinou.

Subs: Komninos Tsavaris, Eugenios Malai, Michail Bosmos, Konstantinos Koutras

Tries: Meads (6, 9), Katsidonis (18, 62), Tuliatu (31), Tsattalios (35, 41), Malai (50), Constantinou (65, 68), Zampetides (79)

Goals: Meads 6/9, N. Bosmos 2/2

MALTA 4  :  Jake Scott, Shaun Chircop, Pete Debono, Jon Micallef, Jean Pierre Zarb, Liam Davis, Adam Campbell, Dean Zammit, Josh Caruana, Vince Farrugia, Damien Davis, Nicky Maylor, Joseph Pio Mizzi

Subs: Clive Sciberras, Liam Scicluna, Sam Blyton-Keep

Try: Caruana (25)

Goal: Zarb 0/1

 

Half time, 30-4  :  Referee, Ben Casty (France)  :  Man of the match, Jordan Meads