Christian Mercieca adds the GFA Player of the Year Award to the successful season.

The GFA Awards were held at the Grand Hotel, in Mgarr. The best achievers of this years GFA competitions were awarded for their hard work and dedication. Here’s a recap of what happened at the GFA Awards 2017-2018.

The twenty-year-old striker of champions Victoria Hotspurs won the GFA Player of the Year Award and therefore completed an impressive season where he won the Gozitan title and the Knock out competition with his side, received the award as the best Gozitan player in the MFA Awards and was recently called to form part of the Under 21 national team. Mercieca was one of the main protagonists in Victoria Hotspurs’ success as he scored nine personal goals in the BOV Gozo Football League and provided several assists to striker Elton Da Silva.

The prestigious honour in Gozitan football was announced during the GFA Awards, which is the annual event organised by the Gozo Football Association at the end of every football season. During the evening the Gozitan Association announced all the individual awards and also presented special awards to personalities who distinguished themselves in different sectors. Top officials from the Malta Football Association, including President Mr Norman Darmanin Demajo, were present for the event, which opened with a recorded message by Dr Clifton Grima, Parliamentary Secretary for Innovation, Youths and Sports who could not attend because of the official opening of the Shooting Range.

Champions Victoria Hotspurs were the main protagonists during the evening as their coach Gotthard Conti won the award for the Coach of the Year while their Brazilian striker Elton Da Silva was awarded with trophies as the Best Foreign Player of the BOV Gozo Football League 1st division and as the top scorer of the top flight.  Ghajnsielem’s midfielder Albertlo Xuereb won the honour as the GFA Best Young player.

Munxar Falcons, who won the double in the second division, had their striker Jordi Parnis who won three trophies.  Parnis was awarded as the best player for the second division, the best player in the Gozo Youth FA Under 18 championship and the top scorer of the Gozo Youth FA Under 18 championship.  Mohammed Senussi Telessi, who started the season with St Lawrence Spurs and joined Sannat Lions in January, won the best foreign player of the BOV Gozo Football League 2nd division and the trophy as top scorer of the same category.

Munxar Falcons’ Brian Meilak, who was among those who received the President’s Award of the MFA this season, was presented with a special award for establishing a record of playing 624 competitive matches and became the player who played most competitive matches in Malta.  Victoria Hotspurs’ Chris Camilleri was also presented a special award for becoming one of the few players in Mata who played more than 600 competitive matches, while 86 year old John Cauchi was presented a special award for his loyalty towards Gozitan football as he contributed as an administrator during the 1960’s and 1970’s and continued to be present in all football matches played in Gozo.

The President of the Gozitan Association Dr Samuel Azzopardi delivered a short speech at the end of the event where he recognised the contribution of all those involved in the administration of the clubs and encourage more people to involve themselves in the club committees.  The President also announced that he wishes that the Gozitan association will soon be in a position to develop a technical sector which would be crucial for the improvement of the nurseries of all the Gozitan clubs.