Xaghra United and Victoria Hotspurs secured a place in the first round of the FA Trophy after defeating Third Division sides Sta. Venera Lightnings and Mdina Knights respectively on Friday.

In the first match at the Gozo Stadium, a brace by Rafael Rennardy De Souza Ferreira on the 49th and 66th handed Xaghra a 2-0 win over Sta. Venera.

In the first round, Xaghra will be facing the winner of the clash between SK Victoria Wanderers and Ghajnsielem.

On the other hand, Victoria Hotspurs found no difficulty in beating Mdina Knights 7-0. Elton da Silva opened the score on the 23rd and added two early in the second half – on the 48th and 59th to put the Hotspurs three goals ahead. Two minutes later, Emiliano Lattes made it 4-0 with two goals in four minutes between the 72nd and 76th by Dylan Bellotti and Henrique Maciel respectively extending the lead further before Emiliano Lattes added another three minutes from time.

The Hotspurs will be facing Siggiewi or Marsaskala in the next round.