Round 17 of the Topo centras Euronics A League brought a much-anticipated, crucial meeting between neighbouring teams in the table: multiple champions Gintra and Vilnius MFA Žalgiris-MRU.
Showing their championship character, the yellow-and-blacks dominated in the capital and defeated Žalgiris 2:0 (1:0).
With three rounds remaining, the win put Gintra five points clear of their closest rivals, taking a major step towards a 20th consecutive A League title.
Starting lineup: L. Tuomi, A. Mikutaitė, S. Amorim, R. Beal, T. Romanovskaja, M. Hagstrom, L. Kubiliūtė, S. Jaatinen (64' T. Shamase), E. Šupelytė (90' M. Proscevičiūtė), A. Kazarina, T. Seara (87' S. Shamase).
Goals:
Gintra: E. Šupelytė (3' min.) and T. Seara (68' min.) one each.
Gintra started much more actively and took the lead in the third minute through an excellent Erika Šupelytė strike for 1–0.
The visitors continued controlling the game and denied their opponents any authority. Aggressive attacking play from Trista Seara nearly produced a second, but defenders intervened as she shot.
The pattern barely changed after the interval. A defender cleared Silja Jaatinen's effort off the line. Ojala's team continued creating chances until Seara doubled the lead in the 68th minute from Tereza Romanovskaja's pass for 2–0.
Šupelytė almost scored a second but hit the post. Agnieška Kazarina also had a good chance for a third, only for a defender to block her shot.
Despite missing opportunities to add a third, Gintra maintained their superiority until the final whistle and celebrated a deserved, vital victory.
Match highlights: