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OUR CLUB HISTORY
THE BEGINNING
In the 1930`s there were many football enthusiasts in Sannat. Among the most fanatic there was a certain Salvu Psaila better known as `Is-surmast`. It was he who founded the first village football team.
Sannat Lions joined the G.F.A. on the 30th. December 1936. During that season they did not take part in the League but only played friendly matches. Their first official game was played on the first of January against Victoria Scouts B. Attard and Vella scored for Victoria Scouts. In the second period G. Spiteri scored for Sannat. On that occasion the team for Sannat consisted of:
Spiteri, Xuereb, Curmi, G. Attard, Galea, Sciberras, Pace, Debrincat, G. Spiteri Borg Cardona, C. Spiteri
On the Sixth January 1937, Sannat Lions played another friendly match against Ghajnsielem losing 3-0. On 24th January 1937, they showed a lot of progress in a draw of 1-1 against Victoria Stars. A month later they played another friendly match drawing another 1-1 against Victoria Swallows. On both occasions Wenzu Debrincat scored for Sannat goals. This last game aroused a lot of interest in both Sannat and Rabat enthusiasts. Consequently the G.F.A. Committee organized a Cup Tie between Sannat Lions and Victoria Hotspurs. Unfortunately no records were found about this game.
On Sunday 18th.April 1937, Sannat Lions played another game against Victoria Swallows. Again this game ended in a 2-2 draw. Another game which arose a lot of interest was played on the 2nd.May 1937 against Victoria Stars. The latter was one of the best teams at that time, and had never suffered a defeat yet. Therefore, it was no surprise that they beat Sannat 4-0. TRAINING AND THE FIRST COMPETITIVE MATCHES. Among the first problems that were encountered in the first years there were: a lack of a meeting place and a football ground where the team could train. In the meantime boys from Sannat continued to play football between themselves after work in the square in front of the local church, always on the look-out for any police constable that might pass by who could give them a ticket or take away their ball. The season of 1937-38 started out late in time, therefore there were only four teams who took part in this championship. These were: Victoria City, Victoria Eagles, Victoria Stars and Sannat Lions. In this league Sannat were tossed against Victoria Eagles on the 17th April 1938. Unfortunately the result of this match remains unknown. We only know that after the match, both teams protested to the association against each other. Sannat protested that Victoria Eagles used the players Borg and Tony Attard who apparently had already been registered with Victoria Stars. On the other hand Victoria insisted that Sannat`s Pisani had not been properly registered. Unfortunately most of the results of that championship went missing, but we do know that Victoria Scouts came out as the winners. SANNAT COME BACK AFTER THE WAR.
Sannat Lions F.C. 1944 In the late years before the war Sannat did not present themselves as a team and consequently their players scattered and joined varios Rabat Teams. As the war came to an end football in Gozo came back to life, with the first edition of the championship being organised in 1944-45. At the start of this season Sannat Lions applied to take part in this championship. The first competition to be organised was The Galea Cup. In the first semi-final Sannat Lions drew with Xaghra Red Stars {1-1}. But the return match was never played as Sannat Lions were unable to form a team. This came about because some of the players who were stationed in Malta could not cross-over to Gozo because of the bad weather. In the league Sannat finished in fifth place out of six teams. It is to be noted that the Lions lost only one game and drew the other four. In the 1945-46 season Sannat finished again in the fifth position. This time they were able to defeat Ghajnsielem 3-1 but lost 6-1 against Victoria Athletics. This defeat along with another 5-0 result in the Galea Cup against the same team precipitated the team’s management morale. In the subsequent season they did not form a team and remained out of the league until the 1952 season. THE THIRD PERIOD IN THE CLUB'S HISTORY.
Sannat Lions F.C. 1953 Sannat Lions appeared again in the Gozitan League in the 1952-53 season. This was a short return as after four seasons in the Second Division they broke-up. In the 1952-53 season they almost won the league, when they finished at the top of the table with equal points as Nadur Olympians and the reserves of Xewkija Tigers. The final game of the league was to be a decisive one as a win both for Nadur as well as for Sannat would have given either the title. In fact it finished in a nil-nil draw, which brought up the necessity of play-offs between the three contenders. Towards the end of the match between Xewkija and Nadur trouble arose between the opposing supporters when Referee Zahra gave a goal to Nadur. The game was never finished but Nadur were given the points. They, then won 2-1 against Sannat which gave them the title as well as the promotion. In the 1953-54 season Sannat finished at the second place after a fight to the finish against Kercem Ajax. After that they slowly went from bad to worst until they finished at the bottom of the table and out of the league in the 1958-59 season.
Sannat Lions F.C.1957 Sannat Lions F.C. 1958 SANNAT BACK IN THE LEAGUE FOR THE FOURTH TIME. There was a lapse of five years until Sannat came up with a new team. In the 1964-65 season they finished second and a year later in third place. Later, in the 1966-67 season they won the league and the promotion to the First Division. At that time, Sannat were being promoted again and relegated again between the First and Second Divisions. After two seasons they were again relegated. The next five years were spent in the Second Division until Sannat were able to come up with a stronger side. Between 1969 and 1972 they placed four times in the second position until finally they were able to win promotion in the 1973-74 season. Here begins the first of two great periods in the club’s history.
Mr. Nicola Apap presenting the 2nd Division League Cup Champions From The Book of Mr. Carmel Baldacchino (Photos Mr. John Buttigieg)
Sannat Lions F.C. Champions for the First Time 1975-76 THE FIRST GOLDEN PERIOD In the 1971-72 season, Sannat Lions won the British American Cup. This competition was reserved for Second Division teams. In the final they beat the winners of the Second Division, Oratory Youths. In the following season they won again this title. Sannat opened the 1973-74 season on a good note when they played in the final of the G.F.A. Cup. Although they were just a second division team, Sannat played a great game and were most unlucky to loose 0-2 to Ghajnsielem. After this, the morale of the team was very high and they continued to show great play until they won the Second Division League. They dominated the league along with Victoria United which lead them to a decider with the same Team. Even here neither of the teams gave up an inch and it was to be a lone goal which gave the championship to Sannat. Here, we come to the first of two great periods in the history of the club. In the 1974-75 season they won the G.F.A. Cup for the first time. This was the first main honor for the Club. Less prestigious honors which they had won before included The British American in 1969-70, 1970-71, 1972-73 and the Gozo Civic Cup in 1971-72.
The victory of the G.F.A. opened the door to a lot of honors for the Sannat boys. In the 1975-76 Sannat won the championship for the first time with a three point advantage on Ghajnsielem F.C. During that season they were never beaten and they went on to win the G.F.A. Cup and the Republic Cup.
Suddenly, Sannat Lions became the most respected team in Gozo. In the 1976-77season they presented a very young team which was able to win all available honors. Their domination was so total that they finished with a seven point lead on runners-up Ghajnsielem. They also won the G.F.A and the Republic Cups. That season happened to be the fortieth anniversary of the clubs` foundation. It turned out to be a carbon copy of the previous one. The only thing that varied was the record of games without a negative result which now amounted to 42.
Sannat`s best department was their attack where the well known Frankie Muscat stood out. For the nth. time Muscat scored the most goals in the championship. The defence department was also strong and in a whole season netted only four goals. Here, the goalkeeper Cardona was brilliant where he set a record of 700 continuous unbeaten minutes. In the preliminary round of the G.F.A. Cup, Sannat sweated quite a lot to eliminate the strong side of Nadur Youngsters. They then eliminated both Second Division Teams Victoria Red Stars and Victoria United. In the Final which was played on Sunday the 28th. Of November they defeated Xewkija Tigers 1-0 in front of one of the most crowded ground that season. In that years` edition of the Republic Cup, Sannat played Ghajnsielem in the Final. They won with a solitary goal from Grezzju Stellini. In that season Sannat lost 2-3 in a friendly match against the amateur German side of F.C. Rauental.
In the 1977-78 Season The Lions completely dominated the Gozitan football scene. Not only did they win all available titles but also increased their unbeaten record to 61 games. In the G.F.A. Cup, Sannat beat Ghajnsielem and Qala before meeting Nadur Youngsters in the Final. On Sunday 30th.April they were able to win this Cup for the fourth year running with a goal from Toni Pisani. The Final of the Republic Cup between Sannat and Xewkija was abandoned in the second half when Xewkija walked off the ground. Sannat were thus able to keep the Cup three years running. In that season, The Farsons Tournament was first organized. It was only appropriate that the first winners of this tournament would be Sannat Lions. In the Final the Gozitan Champions beat Ghajnsielem 1-0 with a goal from Frankie Muscat in the last minutes of the game. A large part of the teams success can be attributed to this player who not only won the top scorer of the league but also won the Title of Player of the Year. FIRST DEFEAT AFTER 64 GAMES
Sannat`s fantastic record ended in the 1978-79 season. After a good start they lost to Victoria Hotspurs 1-0 in one of the fiercest football games of the season. Excellent goalkeeper Cardona decided to retire and from then forwards the team started going downhill. They lost points to less quoted teams and finally had to accept the second placing in the table at the end of the season. In this season proved himself again the Legendary Frankie Muscat. Besides playing great football, he finished as a top scorer for the fifth year running. Even though they did not win the league, Sannat continued to win other honors. In the Gozo F.A. Cup, they forced a decider against Qala St.Joseph beating them 3-0 in the final and took the cup home for the fifth year running. After this competition, Sannat beat Ghajnsielem in the final of the Farsons` Tournament. Later they beat Ghajnsielem again at the penalties shootout in the Cup of `Jum il-Helsien`. In the season of 1979-80 Sannat finished their play at the top of the table with the same amount of points as Victoria Hotspurs. Thus a decider had to be played to decide the winning team. This game proved to be one of the most interesting matches and had to be played three times. The first two games finished in draws of 1-1 and 0-0. Then in the third game, Victoria Hotspurs won with a solitary goal. Naturally, there was great disappointment in the Sannat crowd, but the season still proved to be a positive one because two other major honors were won. In the 18th.November 1979 they beat Victoria hotspurs 4-2 after penalties in the final of the Farsons Cup and in the 31st.March they beat Victoria United 3-0 in the Cup `Jum il-Helsien`. In the season of 1979-80 Sannat finished their play at the top of the table with the same amount of points as Victoria Hotspurs. Thus a decider had to be played to decide the winning team. This game proved to be one of the most interesting matches and had to be played three times. The first two games finished in draws of 1-1 and 0-0. Then in the third game, Victoria Hotspurs won with a solitary goal. Naturally, there was great disappointment in the Sannat crowd, but the season still proved to be a positive one because two other major honors were won. In the 18th.November 1979 they beat Victoria hotspurs 4-2 after penalties in the final of the Farsons Cup and in the 31st.March they beat Victoria United 3-0 in the Cup `Jum il-Helsien`. In the next season, Sannat were able to win back their champions crown. Besides they beat Bosco Youths 1-0 in the final of the Gozo Cup. They also beat Victoria United 2-1 in the final of the `Jum il-helsien` Cup. In 1981-82 Sannat won the Championship and the G.F.A. Cup. They had a tough time dealing with Calypsians Bosco Youths for the winning of the title. By the end of the first round things looked brighter for the Victoria team especially when the Youths beat Sannat 1-0. Then at the start of the second round, things got better for Sannat Lions. Calypsians lost precious points against Victoria Hotspurs and Xewkija Tigers. Sannat danced to a different tune and were able to win all their matches giving them the title for the second consecutive year. Rivalry between the two teams continued to grow especially when they met in the final of the Gozo F.A. Cup. Sannat won 2-1 so that they were able to add this Cup to the honors for that season. Moreover Sannat’s defender Anglu Bajada was chosen as Player of the Year in Gozo.
This season practically brought to an end the first great period in the history of Sannat Lions. Five seasons had to go by before the Championship returned to Sannat, thus opening another excellent period in the history of the Club.
THE SECOND GREAT PERIOD IN THE HISTORY OF SANNAT L.
The period 1982-86 was one of changes for Sannat Lions. During these four seasons they only brought home the Gozo F.A. Cup in 1982-83. Slowly but steadily they began to build up a new team which was to lead them to another great period in the club’s history. By 1986-87 Sannat had already made their way to the top of the table and were ready to challenge for the honors. That season the championship was held on a one round basis with the teams being divided into two sections. The first three teams of each section contested the championship pool whereas the others played in the relegation pool. In the previous two seasons Sannat Lions missed the league with a single solitary point. Therefore, this time they made greater efforts and succeeded in winning the title for the sixth time in their history. This honor coincided with the celebrations of the fiftieth anniversary of the Club’s Foundation. Sannat Lions and Victoria Hotspurs dominated their respective sections. Then, in the championship pool, Xaghra United joined the race to the top. It was a very tough challenge but Sannat continued to win their matches until they won the Championship.
FRANKIE MUSCAT HANGS HIS
BOOTS.
At the end of this season, Sannat
lost their great player Frankie Muscat. Mario Farrugia took his place in
the team and did quite honorable play in replacing Muscat. In that
season, Sannat won the championship again and got to the final of four
other competitions. Unfortunately they only won one of these
competitions. In the Independence Cup, Sannat lost 5-4 after the penalties against Ghajnsielem. In the final of the Gozo FA Cup, they drew 1-1 against Nadur Youngsters. Sannat could have won this game one minute from time, if a goal from Gianni Bajada was not disallowed by the referee. Sannat paid dearly for this decision as after the replay finished with a 0-0 draw, they lost 4-1 after the penalties. Now was the time for the final of the Rothmans' Cup against Victoria Hotspurs. This time, Sannat won this Cup with an only goal by Martin Cardona in the extra time. Consequently Sannat put their name in the honors for this Cup as well.
In the 1988-89 season, Sannat Lions and
Xaghra United raced each other to the end of the championship. Both
teams were of the same caliber but maybe Xaghra were a bit better. In
that season Xaghra won the championship and went ahead to win all other
main honors in Gozitan football. Sannat found themselves in the unusual
position of being the losers. This was quite a cold shower for the
Sannat Team but in the following year things changed. After a hard race
with Xaghra United, they made up for the previous year's disappointment
by beating their rivals in a decider for the championship. In that season, besides the championship, Sannat got to the Final of the Independence Cup. Sannat were the confirmed favorites but surprisingly lost to the second division team of Nadur Youngsters after the penalty shoot-out. The winning of the championship in the 1989-90 season brought down the scene on the second great period of Sannat football. After that season it seemed that luck abandoned the club and in the seven seasons that followed between 1990 and 1997 they were able to win only two honors.
Besides the first division league, Sannat also won the knock-out of this division and the ‘jum il-Helsien’ Cup. In the same season goalkeeper Paul Galea was selected as player of the year,while the Albanian Fehmi Rama finished as top scorer with 13 goals. In the season 1998-99 even though they were just promoted, Sannat gave a hard time to Nadur Youngsters for the top place, but they failed for a few points. Unfortunately, in the following season things did not go well and Sannat Lions finished being relegated again. In the meantime the G.F.A. scrapped the Premier League and went back to the old system. It was a very disappointing situation for the Lions’ supporters. Nobody expected that after such a good start in the previous season the team finished by being relegated to the Second Division. Fortunately the Sannat fighting spirit lingered, so much so that in the Season 2000-01, the Lions won promotion again. It was a breath of fresh air for everybody at Sannat and many thought that the trouble was over. It was not meant to be and Sannat were relegated again on the first season. The New Century did not auger well for Sannat Lions, but we can say that, that’s how the game goes. Sometimes it is Glory time other times it is the pits. One thing can be said tough: a team with such a glorious past will soon return to its’ place up in the tables to win more honors with their collection. Up to now they are the team that won most honors in Gozitan Football. Sannat Lions Football Club Gozo Champions For 9th time
THE 9TH CHAMPIONSHIP 2008-09
THE NINETIES In the 1991-92 season, Sannat won the Gemaherija Cup with a goal in the extra time by Raymond Buttigieg. This was the first time that Sannat won this cup, which is played between the four teams that finish in the highest position in the championship of the previous season. In the semi-finals, Sannat beat Xewkija Tigers with a goal from Raymond Fava and in the Final they beat Victoria Hotspurs. Even though the 1992-93 season was not phenomenal for Sannat, they still remained one of the best teams in Gozo. They placed second in a championship dominated by Xaghra United and they were the only team that gave the leaders a hard time. The draws that Sannat made with less quoted teams are what kept them backwards. Also in the two matches against Xaghra United the players were heavily stressed as they needed to win to keep the pace with Xaghra. Unfortunately they lost both of them.
In the following season, Sannat lost ground until in 1996-97 they were relegated for the first time since 1968-69. Ironically Sannat had started this season on a good note. In the first phase of the Independence Cup, Sannat won their group without conceding a single goal. In the semifinals they eliminated Xaghra United after the penalty shootout. Finally they beat the previous years’ winners, Nadur Youngsters with the Golden Goal. Their taking home this cup gave Sannat a false sense of security as they expected to do well in the championship, On the contrary they were relegated after 23 years in the Top Division. This presented a humiliating position for a club which had such a glorious past. Sannat organized again, using veterans and minor players, a strong side with the expertise of coach Teddy Bajada. Sannat dominated the first division league so much so that they finished with a fourteen point lead on their nearest rival. So Sannat returned to the top league which by now was referred to, as the Premier Division. The Fans Celebrate the 8 title Gozitan Champions 1989-90
PHOTOS BY MR. JOHN BUTTIGIEG Besides the first division league, Sannat also won the knock-out of this division and the ‘jum il-Helsien’ Cup. In the same season goalkeeper Paul Galea was selected as player of the year,while the Albanian Fehmi Rama finished as top scorer with 13 goals. In the season 1998-99 even though they were just promoted, Sannat gave a hard time to Nadur Youngsters for the top place, but they failed for a few points. Unfortunately, in the following season things did not go well and Sannat Lions finished being relegated again. In the meantime the G.F.A. scrapped the Premier League and went back to the old system. It was a very disappointing situation for the Lions’ supporters. Nobody expected that after such a good start in the previous season the team finished by being relegated to the Second Division. Fortunately the Sannat fighting spirit lingered, so much so that in the Season 2000-01, the Lions won promotion again. It was a breath of fresh air for everybody at Sannat and many thought that the trouble was over. It was not meant to be and Sannat were relegated again on the first season. The New Century did not auger well for Sannat Lions, but we can say that, that’s how the game goes. Sometimes it is Glory time other times it is the pits. One thing can be said tough: a team with such a glorious past will soon return to its’ place up in the tables to win more honors with their collection. Up to now they are the team that won most honors in Gozitan Football. Sannat Lions Football Club Cups Winners and Other Divisions Champions
SUPER CUP WINNER FOR THE FIRST TIME 2008-09
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