The Malta Veterans bowed out of the Jubilee Cup following a heavy 8-1 defeat to Birżebbuġa St Peter’s, a team that proved simply too strong on the day at the the Victor Tedesco Stadium. Despite the scoreline, the Veterans battled throughout and found moments to cheer, particularly through the goal scored by Adam Smeir.

Birżebbuġa made their intentions clear from the start, with David Oliveira Souza putting them ahead inside six minutes after a quick counter. Just a minute later, the Veterans almost replied immediately when Kurt Magro forced goalkeeper James Pisani into a save, but luck was not on their side.

Birżebbuġa’s firepower was evident as Oliveira added a second with a header on 16 minutes, and a long-range strike by Alex Bruno extended the lead further in the 27th minute. Oliveira completed his hat-trick before half-time, and although Bruno also struck the post, the Veterans found themselves 4-0 down at the interval.

The second half began in similar fashion, with Oliveira adding his fourth goal soon after the restart. However, the Veterans refused to give up. A dangerous free-kick by Justin Grioli on 48 minutes tested Pisani in goal, and just after the hour mark, the Veterans finally got their reward.

Adam Smeir produced a well-taken low drive that beat Pisani and gave the team something to celebrate, making the score 5-1.

Birżebbuġa added three more goals through Paul Lapira, Yusuf Suleiman and substitute Jacob Walker to seal the issue.