In the 22nd round of the Tonybet Virslīga, SK Super Nova finally snapped a five-match winless streak with a hard-fought 1-0 home victory against FK Tukums 2000 — a result made all the more impressive by the fact that the hosts played the entire second half with ten men.
Earlier in the season, both encounters between these two sides ended in draws, so another tight contest was expected, especially with both teams level on points heading into the match.
With Super Nova’s first-choice goalkeeper Frenks Dāvids Orols having left the team, Dāvis Viljams Veisbuks was handed his third start of the season. Aside from that, head coach Ervīns Pērkons opted to stick with the same lineup that faced FK Auda in the previous round.
Meanwhile, Kristaps Dišlers, coming off a big win over FK Metta, made two changes to his Tukums 2000 side. Daniils Putrāns earned a place in the starting eleven after an impressive showing against Metta, while Dāvis Mārcis Valmiers was also included from the first whistle.
The breakthrough came early in the match when Super Nova was awarded a penalty after Dāvis Mārcis Valmiers handled the ball inside his own box. Ralfs Šitjakovs confidently stepped up and converted from the spot, beating his former teammate from Jelgava, Raivo Stūriņš, to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
However, Super Nova’s task became significantly more difficult just before halftime. Japanese midfielder Ryuga Nakamura was shown a straight red card for a reckless challenge on Kaspars Anmanis in a 50-50 battle for the ball, leaving the hosts to defend their lead with ten men for the remainder of the game.
With the numerical advantage, FK Tukums 2000 took control of possession in the second half and pressed hard for an equalizer. Super Nova, however, held firm with a disciplined and compact defensive performance. In the dying minutes, Tukums’ top scorer, Ingars Pūlis, had two long-range efforts that went just over the crossbar, narrowly missing the chance to rescue a point for the visitors.
A special moment came in stoppage time when 29-year-old Eduards Emsis made his debut for Super Nova. It marked his return to action after nearly a year out with injury, having last played a full match on August 26 last year in Norway’s second-tier league.
With the victory, Super Nova leapfrogged FK Grobiņa in the standings to move into 7th place with 21 points from 22 matches. Meanwhile, FK Tukums 2000 remains in 9th place on 18 points, just one spot off the bottom of the table.
SK Super Nova vs FK Grobiņa – 1:0 (1:0)
Goals: Šitjakovs 15′ (Penalty kick)
SUP: Veisbuks, Zeņģis, Augusts, Ošs, Vējkrīgers, Tihonovičs (Bērziņš 46′), Maslovs (Sprukts 69′), Čudars, Nakamura, Šitjakovs (Emsis 90’+1), Glaudāns (Deklavs 46′)
TUK: Stūriņš, Rogovs (Bekima 69′), Mihoubi, Reingolcs, Kholod, Anmanis, Putrāns (Toba 46′), Valmiers (Ķiršs 46′), Samoilovs (Joksts 80′), Dusalijevs, Pūlis
Virslīga Matchday 22:
- 04.07.2025 – FC RFS vs FK Liepāja – 2:1
- 05.07.2025 – FK Auda vs FS Jelgava – 2:0
- 06.07.2025 – FK Grobiņa vs FK Metta – 0:1
- 06.07.2025 – SK Super Nova vs FK Tukums 2000 – 1:0
- 06.07.2025 – Riga FC vs BFC Daugavpils – 1:1
| # | Club | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Riga FC | 36 | 27 | 7 | 2 | 59 | 88 |
| 2 | FC RFS | 36 | 28 | 3 | 5 | 61 | 87 |
| 3 | FK Liepāja | 36 | 18 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 61 |
| 4 | BFC Daugavpils | 36 | 13 | 9 | 14 | -10 | 48 |
| 5 | FK Auda | 36 | 13 | 6 | 17 | -5 | 45 |
| 6 | FS Jelgava | 36 | 8 | 14 | 14 | -7 | 38 |
| 7 | FK Tukums 2000 | 36 | 9 | 9 | 18 | -24 | 36 |
| 8 | SK Super Nova | 36 | 6 | 14 | 16 | -12 | 32 |
| 9 | FK Grobiņa | 36 | 8 | 8 | 20 | -31 | 32 |
| 10 | FK Metta | 36 | 8 | 7 | 21 | -35 | 31 |
