Riga Mariners overturned the hierarchy on Saturday, beating Valmiera / BSS 2-4 in the 1st League. The hosts sat second with 51 points after 21 games, while the visitors were fourth on 47 points. And here's the thing — this was not a game that followed the script written by the table.
Valmiera / BSS struck first through A. Berzins in the seventh minute, then A. Pavlovskis added a second twelve minutes in. The visitors answered before the break with T. Yamamura's goal in the forty-fifth. By then, the momentum had already shifted, though it would take the second half to make it undeniable.
The visitors took control after the interval. A. Pavlovskis doubled his tally in the sixty-second minute, and M. Caune extended the lead in the seventy-fourth. R. Owusu completed the scoring in the eighty-fourth. To be fair, Valmiera / BSS looked as though they had lost the thread somewhere around the hour mark.
Recent form makes the result less surprising. Valmiera / BSS had won four of their previous five, including a 6-1 against Rezene and a 4-1 win over Marupe. Riga Mariners, meanwhile, were coming off a 1-4 defeat to Smiltene on 12 September, but had responded with a 5-0 demolition of Rezene five days earlier. The heat took the sting out of the earlier loss.
The result closes the gap in the standings. Valmiera / BSS remain second with 51 points from 21 games, while Riga Mariners move up to third on 50 points. The visitors are running out of games, but this performance suggests they still believe they can challenge for the title.