Armenia round-up: Pyunik end season on a low

Champions FC Pyunik finished their successful Armenian Premier league campaign with an uncharacteristic defeat on Wednesday night - only their third loss of the season.

Poor defeat
Pyunik, who had already sewn up their third Armenian title by 10 November, went down to a poor 5-3 defeat at home to FC Zvartnots AAL, whose win earned them a third-place finish. The visitors went ahead through Levon Mkrtchian after 14 minutes and Sargis Nazarian doubled the advantage in the 25th minute.

Comeback goals
Artur Kocharian pulled a goal back for the hosts two minutes before half-time but Mher Avanesian restored the two-goal cushion a minute later. Nazarian made it 4-1 with his second of the night six minutes after the break before Arman Karamian pulled another goal back for the home side a minute before the hour mark.

Nervy finish
Artak Hovhannisian's 75th-minute strike for the champions made it 4-3 and ensured a nervy finish, but Avanesian struck his second in the last minute to end any hopes of a late equaliser for the hosts.

Hat-trick hero
Elsewhere, Aram Hakobian helped himself to a hat-trick as Araks Yerevan cemented their runners-up spot with a convincing 4-0 away win over FC Kotaik. Hakobian started the ball rolling for the visitors with a tenth-minute penalty and added further goals after 56 and 68 minutes. Hayk Hakobian scored Araks' other goal in the 12th minute.

Shirak finish on a high
FC Shirak were already guaranteed fourth spot before Wednesday's matches but they finished the season on a high note with an impressive 4-1 away win at FC Dinamo-2000 Yerevan. Elsewhere, bottom-of-the-table FC Lori were handed their 19th defeat in 22 matches after going down 3-0 at home to FC Ararat Yerevan.