Gintra of Šiauliai returned to Šiauliai Central Stadium on Sunday for their round 11 Women's A League match.
Backed by a large crowd in the stands, the Šiauliai side won 1:0 (1–0 at half-time) against FK Žalgiris of Vilnius and remain the sole league leaders.
The teams' first meeting in Vilnius had ended goalless.
Starting lineup: A. Herasymchuk, T. Romanovskaja (80' min. A. Kazarina), G. Knutzen, L. Kubiliūtė (80' min. A. Šveckutė), S. Amorim, M. Galkina (86' min. U. Grincevičiūtė), A. Mikutaitė, T. Brown, L. Ribeiro (62' min. M. Proscevičiūtė), K. Pereviznyk, J. Blaževičiūtė (62' min. K. Johnson).
Gintra: L. Kubiliūtė (15' min.) - 1.
Gintra marked their central stadium return with a fairly early goal. Laura Kubiliūtė found the net in the 15th minute to make it 1–0.
The yellow and blacks had more possession and dominated the pitch. Leading scorer Kristina Pereviznyk and Justina Blaževičiūtė also had chances, but their efforts were off target. The hosts' narrow advantage remained, with no more goals before half-time.
The pattern did not change in the second half. The Šiauliai side continued controlling the ball and kept their opponents away from Alla Herasymchuk's goal. Head Coach Artūr Sikorskij made a double change in the 63rd minute, bringing on forwards Kiyani Johnson and Meida Proscevičiūtė, returning from injury.
Defender Tereza Romanovskaja had a chance in the 68th minute, but Aušrinė Bikutė saved her shot. K. Johnson also could have doubled the lead, but the Canadian narrowly failed to reach the ball and direct it into the goal.
Gintra created several further opportunities to secure a calmer finish, but could not convert them. Fortunately, Žalgiris also produced little danger at the other end, and Gintra celebrated a deserved narrow victory.
Match highlights:
Coach and captain's reaction: