Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/181770
54 Sport maltatoday, SUNDAY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2013 RUGBY Malta has everything to fight for against Croatia - Brian Dalton BRIAN Dalton, the new president of Malta Rugby Union takes over the reins with an important FIRA European Nations Cup Division 2A match against Croatia looming on the horizon on November 9 at Hibs Ground. The new face of Malta Rugby will be doing more than presenting the trophies, giving speeches, shaking hands and kissing babies with the crucial match against Croatia only 6 weeks away. Mr. Dalton was voted into his new role earlier this month at the MRFU's AGM having served as Martin Galea's Vice President and he says it's "the icing on the cake" of his rugby career, having been a player and Club President before being handed Malta's top rugby job. He confides that he would still rather be out on the pitch, but is eager to put his passion for the game into continuing the sterling development work undertaken by Martin Galea over the last few years. "I'm very happy Martin has remained part of our core Council, as our new Treasurer, he is the main link to what Malta Rugby has become, along with the work of our Technical Director Damian Neill, between them they put Malta Rugby on the national sports map, my job is to continue to build on that success." And what a success. Earlier this year, Malta were ranked at an alltime high of 39th in the world, although two very difficult games saw the team slip a few places in the world rankings. He remains "just a bit disappointed" about this, although it was Mr. Dalton who signed the historic agreement between Malta Rugby and the Government guaranteeing a home at Marsa for Malta's club rugby union teams for the next 25 years together with an allocation of land which may be developed in the future into a national rugby union stadium. "It would be nice if we could play Croatia in our own national rugby stadium on BODYBUILDING CHARMAINE Debono & Priscilla Chalker will be representing Malta in the upcoming NABBA Universe. THIS competition, which sees a good number of bodybuilders compete will be held in Southport, UK on the 12th October. Both contestants will be taking part in the Ms. Toned Figure category. Charmaine and Priscilla will be accompanied by NABBA Malta will be there!" Dalton is currently working on bringing a more secure financial sub-structure to MRFU, and he is working closely with his predecessor Martin Galea to ensure that international rugby competition and funding of the national team is sustainable, while increasing the education pathways and opportunities for local coaches and players across the Union. "We have just launched our first phase of education initiatives this year, all of them IRB accredited, and these include IRB Rugby Ready, the IRB Foundation Module, as well as the IRB Level 1, it's a return to basics and we want to make sure that every player and coach is on the same page so that we have a structure in Malta that is patterned on the national team, we want to develop the skills in our local players that give them an understanding when they enter the national framework. This takes time and money, and while we are grateful to all our sponsors and donors, we will be re-doubling our efforts to find funding for the sport. That is my number one priority," says Dalton. "When I walk out onto the pitch on November 9 to shake the opposition's hands, I want to know that we have everything in place that will give Malta every possible chance, with the strongest selection of players on home soil this year. A strong performance by Malta against Croatia is a strong performance for the Maltese community, for all the people in the stands wearing the shirts, for all those tuned into Melita to watch the game live, for all those following the results online and on social media, we've got a huge following, but the more Maltese in the Hibs stadium on Saturday November 9, the more our Malta team will feel they have something to fight for," concludes the MRFU's new president. Malta Rugby is supported by Cisk Lager, Mediterranean Bank, GasanMamo who are helping to develop the next generation of Malta Rugby players, Bortex Fine Tailoring, Intercontinental Malta, Sundreams Travel, LH&A, PWC, Melita, Untangled Media and Ogilvy & Mather. Malta's European Nations Cup Qualifier match against Croatia will take place at the Hibernians Football Stadium on Saturday November 9, kick-off at 2.00pm. For further information visit www.maltarugby.com or book online with www.ticketline.com. mt or call 9920 7677. TRIATHLON Malthese Athletes to participate in NABBA Universe 2013 ELIZA FARRUGIA November 9, that's one of the things I will be looking into in my term as President, we need to have a permanent home for our national team and coaching set-up if we want to achieve our vision of entering the world's top 30 rugby nations," says Mr. Dalton. Malta's successful national rugby players have been taking Maltese sport to a new level over the last few years, however, the Malta camp are yet to start their season and must play the crucial match against Croatia on November 9 with only a few warmup games by Malta A and this puts the home team in a position where National Coach Damian Neill and his coaching team will have to pull out all the stops to prepare the Malta squad in camps. "This will be Malta's first outing this season in Division 2A, and we have great belief in our ability to contest the Croatia game, although we also know that Croatia will be a handful for the Maltese. This is 'The Big Game' in our calendar this year, but we will have our fans behind us, and I hope that our new ticket structure will bring hundreds of new fans to see their first game. It's a family outing watching rugby, and a lot of fun for Mum and the kids, both my sons President, Mr. Vince Balzan. NABBA Malta has been active for the past 25 years, organizing and helping various local athletes in competing in international events organized by NABBA. Various achievements have been won by Maltese athletes, including last year, when Gilbert Cuschieri, overall winner of the local championships won third place in the Mr Universe Class 3 category. NABBA Malta encourages the Maltese public to show their support towards these athletes. YOUR FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY www.maltatoday.com.mt BBB-Buff Malta National Triathlon Federation Championships to be held on Sunday 6, October SUNDAY 6th October will see the end of the 2103 Triathlon season coming to a close with what promises to be a hard-fought battle for the National Championship title. Triathlon Malta is also pleased to announce a partnership with BBB Bike Parts and Buff Malta who will be the main partners of the most important event in the Maltese Triathlon Calendar. In the men's segment, current National Champion and B'Kara St. Joseph Sprint Series winner Keith Galea, National Duathlon Champion Fabio Spiteri are expected to give some fine performances but athletes such as David Galea, Steve Chetcuti and Graham Borg are not to be underestimated in view of their consistent performances this season. In the women's segment the fine form being showed by Duathlon Champion and B'Kara St. Joseph Sprint Series winner Michelle Vella Wood will make current Triathlon Champion Danica Bonello Spiteri work very hard in order to attempt retain her title. Tough competition is also expected from the young Hannah Pace, winner of a Gold Medal at the European Triathlon Championships in Turkey in June as well as Johanna Calleja who has regained her form in the past races. "The National Championships are the culmination of the season and we are expecting a very exciting race since there is no clear winner. This year has been a very special year for Triathlon Malta, where growth has been exceptional in all areas" said Cyprian Dalli, President of the Malta Triathlon Federation. "We are also very happy with the recently signed partnership with BBB Parts and Buff Malta, which will, through their quality products give a better experience to our athletes" The Championships, which will be contested over a Standard Distance (1.5km swim, 40km cycle and 10km run), will be held on the Salina Coast Road. A Sprint Distance (half Standard distance) will also be held and over 80 athletes have registered so far for this event. A strong presence of foreign athletes, hailing from the United Kingdom and Belgium is also expected. "BBB Bike Parts and Buff Malta would like to congratulate the team at the Malta Triathlon Federation for the massive leap forward that the sport has taken in the past year. The positive atmosphere and great results obtained by Maltese Triathletes makes us proud to be associated with such growth and development" said Etienne Bonello, local representative of BBB Bike Parts and Buff Multifunctional Headwear. "The partnering of such quality products with quality athletes is a winning situation for both and look forward to further strengthening this partnership" The National Triathlon Championships are being supported by BBB Bike Parts Malta, www. buffmalta.com, Garmin Malta, M&Z (Marketing) Ltd, Flora Pro Activ, The Cyclist, B'Kara St. Joseph Sports Club, Pringles, Go&Fun. The general public is to be advised that throughout the duration of the race, from 7:45 till 10:45 the Salina Coast Road will be closed to traffic in order to ensure athletes' safety. Motorists are thus kindly advised to take alternative routes. The Malta Triathlon Federation thanks the general public in advance for their support and understanding.