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After a 2-2 draw between "Ekranas" and "Šiauliai," Panevėžys head coach Valdas Urbonas did not dramatize the result of this long championship match. He expressed a desire for a calmer defense in the game, attributing one of the reasons for the draw to a lack of team actions. "Šiauliai" head coach Gediminas Jarmalavičius was pleased to have timely substitutions, including R. Urbelis who equalized the result.
"Ekranas" head coach Valdas Urbonas: "Contested draw. The attacking style of play was dominant, there were many dangerous moments, which should have pleased the spectators. As a coach, I wanted more assurance, calmness in defense, which was lacking from the beginning. Of course, we were in the lead twice, we needed not only to maintain the winning result, but also could have increased it. The "Šiauliai" front line is definitely threatening and played really well. We need to forget about these draws, draw conclusions from these matches, and prepare for the cup final against "Žalgiris." We have to be ready. These are one of many championship matches, which are not few, and the result is consistent."
The coach disagreed with the journalist's opinion that the goalkeeper has not been performing well in recent matches: "We were recently happy and talked in this hall about the fact that the man didn't let in a goal in 11 consecutive matches, now he missed two or three matches and immediately you draw some far-reaching conclusions. There are various matches for everyone, but today he saved us in two situations, where A. Rimkevičius dangerously attacked, there were several moments in the second half, where he played confidently and managed to repel very dangerous shots. I have no doubt about Emilijus' abilities.
"I wouldn't say that the court had a big influence on the game today, it was the same for both teams. There was no team play, like what we saw before this match and in matches that we won. Today we scored those goals more due to individual players' skills. There weren't those combinations and ball placements, there wasn't what we can do. We didn't catch that rhythm," said "Ekranas" strategist Valdas Urbonas after the match.
"Šiauliai" head coach Gediminas Jarmalavičius: "It was not an easy match, neither for us nor for "Ekranas." It's always pleasant to come to Panevėžys, just not always pleasant to return. Today we will return with a good mood. Speaking about the match, I would say it was a consistent result. Both "Ekranas" and us had opportunities, especially in the second half - Laurynas (Rimavičius), both Robertas (Vėževičius). Luck was on our side in certain moments, in some moments - on "Ekranas". We changed things with a substitution, the young Rokas Urbelis equalized the result. In the first half, when we missed the second goal in the penalty area, we cannot allow the opponents to deceive us as they deceived the defenders. We can't afford that. It was a tense match. In conclusion, the result is consistent.
We knew where we were heading, "Ekranas" had one more day of rest, we had less because we played on Sunday. After dramatic matches with Sūduva, there was a question of how the team would recover. I think we succeeded. Some players were very tired, which is understandable and, I would say, justified. Two consecutive tough matches demanded emotions, willpower, determination, and sports anger," said the team's head coach Gediminas Jarmalavičius at the press conference.
