Finland round-up: Inter close the gap

FC Inter Turku moved to within a point of Finnish Veikkausliiga leaders Myllykosken Pallo-47 tonight after clinching a
comfortable 2-0 away win over strugglers FC Lahti.

Gustafsson opener
Following MyPa's defeat last night - they lost 2-1 at KuPs Kuopio - it was vital that Inter took all three points from their match and Matts Gustafsson set them on their way with the opening goal after 68 minutes. Lahti battled to get back into the game but could not force an equaliser and Rickard Teberio hit a second for the visitors 16 minutes from time to wrap up a victory that means that if Inter win their game in hand on rivals MyPa, they will go to the top of the table.

Haka third
FC Haka moved above HJK Helsinki into third place in the table after claiming a superb 3-0 away win over their rivals. Valeri Popovitch opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 21st minute to silence the home crowd, and despite pressure
from HJK, Haka put the match out of their reach with second half strikes from Sami Ristilä, after 62 minutes and Popovitch's second of the night just five minutes later.

Champion performance
Last season's first division champions Tampere United FC continued their recent progress after a slow start to the season with a 2-1 win against VPS Vaasa thanks to goals from Jari Niemi and Ville Lehtinen, sandwiched between Tomi Sauso's goal for the visitors. Elsewhere, FC Hämeenlinna and AC Allianssi shared the points in a 2-2 draw, while FF Jaro recorded a 2-0 home success against FC Jazz, who remain bottom of the table as a result.