Kaunas win epic race

By Kestas Gimbutas

After eight months and 28 games the destiny of the 2004 title went down to the last match of the season as the top two teams, FBK Kaunas and FK Ekranas, faced each other level on points and with the championship at stake.

Away win
In the event, Kaunas won 2-0 away on 7 November, courtesy of second-half subsitute Andrius Velička, to register their first victory over Ekranas of the campaign and retain the title.

Crowd trouble
A record-breaking 8,000 crowd attended the decider but defeat for the hosts led to crowd trouble as the referee and Kaunas players were bombarded with missiles from the stands after the final whistle. Ekranas will also rue the six points dropped against FK Silute, new to the top flight but with seven players on loan from Kaunas.

Guilty verdict
The backdrop to the title decider had been equally fraught. In the run-up to the game, the National Association of Football Clubs had awarded a potentially decisive 3-0 default victory to Kaunas over Ekranas following the teams' previous First Division encounter, citing the latter club's infringement of association regulations.

Off-field controversy
Ekranas coach Virginijus Liubšys called it a deliberate attempt to destroy his side's championship hopes. "It is disgraceful," he said. "But we will endure this mental pressure and fight back." On the eve of the match, however, the Lithuanian Football Federation (LFF) retracted the association's decision. "Football questions should be solved on the field of play, not in boardrooms," LFF president Liutauras Varanavičius said.

Double celebration
Back on the pitch, there was more silverware for Kaunas when they beat FK Atlantas in a penalty shoot-out in the Lithuanian Cup final. It was a double celebration for 38-year-old coach Valdas Ivanauskas, who collected his first trophies since being appointed last August. Negotiations on a contract extension are ongoing. Ivanauskas was Kaunas's third coach of the campaign, after Sergei Borovski and Šenderis Giršovičius.

Coaching changes
Ekranas striker Povilas Lukšys with 19 goals topped the scoring charts, followed by Mantas Savenas (12) and Vitalijus Kavaliauskas (10). It was not a good season for coaches, however, with five of the eight top-flight teams changing their men at the helm. There may yet be a reprieve for bottom-placed FK Vilnius, though, who could keep their place among the élite should the top flight expand from eight clubs to ten.