"The storm" played on equal terms with Borisovo BATE © EuroFootball.com

The first friendly preseason match, in which they met with Borisov BATE, was the debut for the new Vilnius club coach Edgar Gess and several new team members. Almost 300 spectators gathered at "Sportima" arena to watch the first "Vėtra" preseason match, including the head coach of the Lithuanian national team Algimantas Liubinskas.

The hosts started the meeting with Borisov BATE more actively. Moldovan national team player Ilja Bursukas, who arrived in Vilnius just yesterday, began a dangerous attack, which could have been finished by Nerijus Sasnauskas. BATE was saved from a goal by the crossbar.

Midway through the first half, "Vėtra" defenders played with a hand in the penalty area, resulting in a penalty kick awarded to the Lithuanian team. However, the guests failed to score. Goalkeeper Arvydas Kacinkevicius guessed where the opponent would shoot and saved the team from a goal. Unfortunately, shortly after an error by the "Vėtra" goalkeeper, a goal was scored. The guests' striker rounded the goalkeeper who had come out of the goal, and in the 23rd minute BATE took the lead 1-0.

"Vėtra" again began to attack dangerously. One of the offenses ended in a foul by the opponents in the penalty area against Rolandas Vaineikis. The "injured" R. Vaineikis himself took the penalty kick. His shot was very precise, into the bottom corner of the goal. In the 31st minute, the score became tied at 1-1.

Before the break, both teams launched a few more very dangerous attacks. In one of them, the hosts were saved by the goalpost. "Vėtra" had dangerous shots after R. Vaineikis and I. Bursukas attempts, but the shots didn't hit the target. The first half ended in a 1-1 draw.

The beginning of the second half didn't go well for "Vėtra." In the 5th minute, the guests managed to take the lead again. A ricochet interfered with the goalkeeper's attempt to save the ball kicked from 15 meters. After this goal, the game was quite evenly matched until the middle of the half.

Luck was on the side of the Vilnius team in the 72nd minute. Ilja Bursukas tried to lob the ball over the goalkeeper. Edvinas Blažys headed the ball into the net from a couple of meters after it ricocheted off the crossbar. The score became tied at 2-2. There were plenty of dangerous attacks until the final whistle, but no more goals were scored. The match between "Vėtra" and Borisov BATE ended in a 2-2 draw.

After the match, the head coach of the capital's club, Edgaras Gessas, was satisfied with the game: "The team played well. Especially in the first twenty minutes. Later, fatigue set in because the players worked very intensively throughout the month in the training camp. We did not specifically prepare for these matches, so even on the eve of the match, the players had a huge physical load. But despite that, the team played technically and creatively, leaving a good impression."

E. Gessas liked the game of the newcomer Moldovan Ilja Bursukas. However, E. Gessas did not want to highlight any specific player, as according to the coach, the whole team played well.