© EuroFootball.com
"The country's champion Panevezys "Ekranas" returned to the path of victories. In the only and last match of the 22nd round of the A League on Sunday, the inhabitants of Panevezys convincingly defeated Klaipeda's "Atlantas", which had lost its coach and several players, and secured themselves in the second place of the tournament table.
Panevezys "Aukstaitija" Stadium, 852 spectators
Referee - Paulius Malžinskas
3 - 1
59' [1 - 0] Povilas Lukšys
61' [1 - 1] Edvinas Lukoševičius
77' [2 - 1] Arūnas Klimavičius
84' [3 - 1] Povilas Lukšys
"Ekranas": Grybauskas; Paulauskas, Klimavičius, Jagminas; Petrauskas (53' Mihalčuks), Kučys, Savėnas, Gardzijauskas, Kavaliauskas (46' Varnas); Lukšys, Pogreban (66' Šlekys)
"Atlantas": Valius; R.Maciulevičius, Ramonas, E.Žukauskas, Lukoševičius; Navikas, Žernys, Gedgaudas (83' Petreikis), Danilyuk (84' Šoblinskas); Karalius (67' Žvingilas), Laurišas
This season "Ekranas" had not yet beaten "Atlantas" - the first match, while in the second one in Klaipeda, the city's team won with a score of 2-0. In this match, former "Vilnius" defender Dainius Jagminas made his debut for "Ekranas", while one of the team leaders Maksimas Morozovas could not help "Atlantas" due to yellow cards.
The first half of the match ended goalless, but in the second half "Ekranas" finally managed to prove their superiority, as Povilas Lukšys brought the hosts forward in the 59th minute. However, the advantage of the Panevezys team lasted only a couple of minutes, as Edvinas Lukoševičius soon equalized the score.
Nevertheless, in the 77th minute, defender Arūnas Klimavičius restored the lead for "Ekranas", and with six minutes left until the end of the match, Panevezys secured the victory with his second goal of the season by P. Lukšys. This victory allowed "Ekranas" to solidify their second place with 40 points, overtaking "Atlantas" who played two games less and had nine points less in fourth place.
