Skanstē beat Mārupe 4:2 in the First League regular season on Friday, 1 August 2026. The home side took control after a shaky start and ran out comfortable winners at their own ground. Both teams had played nineteen matches before kick-off, with Mārupe sitting two points ahead in sixth place and Skanstē nine points back in ninth.
D. Baltrusaitis opened the scoring in the seventh minute, giving Skanstē an early lead. Mārupe responded through R. Penka in the twenty-ninth minute before A. Scerbinskis restored the advantage just before half-time. The home side doubled their lead fifty-two minutes in with a second goal from Scerbinskis, and by then the tie was slipping away from the visitors.
Mārupe clawed their way back into the contest when T. Abdulraheem scored in the fifty-ninth minute, but Skanstē closed the door with A. Minasyan's strike in the sixty-seventh minute. The result ended Mārupe's recent run of mixed form — they had won two of their last five but also suffered heavy defeats against Metta and Riga Mariners.
After the match, Skanstē moved to twenty-six points, while Mārupe remained on twenty-five. The gap between them narrowed to one point, though Skanstē still trailed in the table. The home side's recent results had been poor, with four defeats in five league games before this victory.
And here's the thing about matches like this — they are decided by moments rather than sustained pressure. Three goals in the second half from Skanstē changed the complexion of the game entirely. Mārupe had chances but could not find the equaliser when it mattered most.