In the first match of the day in the Lithuanian A Lyga, FA Šiauliai started the season by securing their first official win under new manager Dainis Kazakevičs by defeating FK Paņevežys 3-1 in an away game.
FA Šiauliai, who finished 7th last season, underwent a managerial change in the offseason, bringing in Dainis Kazakevičs. Meanwhile, FK Paņevežys, which finished 8th last season, also started this season with a new manager—German specialist Roland Vrabec.
A notable moment in the game was the return of forward Ariagner Smith for Paņevežys. He missed all of last season due to injury but was a key player in their surprising A Lyga title win in the 2023 season, scoring 14 goals and providing 6 assists.
However, Smith and his team did not start the game well. In the third minute, Paņevežys player Kwadwo Asamoah handled the ball, resulting in a penalty kick. One of Šiauliai’s new signings, 23-year-old Portuguese player Benny Smith, converted the penalty.
In the 11th minute, Paņevežys equalized with a free kick from around 30 meters, which was taken by Ukrainian defender Andriy Karvatskyi. The shot went directly to the goalkeeper, who fumbled it, allowing the ball to trickle into the net—a disappointing goal to concede.
In the 24th minute, Šiauliai applied significant pressure, leading to a mistake by a Paņevežys defender. Eligijus Jankauskas capitalized on this error, receiving a pass from Micevičius, dribbling past the goalkeeper, and scoring into an empty net.
At the beginning of the second half, Paņevežys faced a greater challenge when goalscorer Karvatskyi received his second yellow card and was sent off.
In the 66th minute, Faustas Steponavičius had a chance to equalize, but his shot from outside the box was saved by Baliutavičius, who recovered well from his earlier error. If Paņevežys had not scored during one of their few second-half chances, Šiauliai would score their insurance goal just a minute later.
Substitute Deividas Dovydaitis made an impressive run down the right flank, delivering a cross into the middle of the box where Eligijus Jankauskas and Paņevežys defender Strahija Kerkez were competing for the ball. It deflected off the Paņevežys defender and into the net, with the credit for the goal going to Dovydaitis for his contribution.
FA Šiauliai held on to their two-goal lead, marking Dainis Kazakevičs’s debut with a win and three points to kick off the season.
Their next league game will be on Saturday when they host DFK Dainava Alytus. FK Paņevežys will be looking for their first win on Sunday when they play an away game against FC Hegelmann.
FK Paņevežys – FA Šiauliai 1:3 (1:2)
Goals: Karvatskyi 11′ | Benny Silva 4′ (Penalty kick), Jankauskas 24′ Kerkez 70′ (Own goal)
Yellow Card: Karvatskyi 32′, Dante 66′ | Micevičius 58′ Red Card: Karvatskyi 55′
Paņevežys: Černiauskas – Rasimavičius, Klimavičius, Januševskis, Karvatskyi – Dante – Vaičekauskas (Krasniqi 58′), Asante (Kouadio 78′), Steponavičius, Asamoah (Kerkez 68′) – Smith (Dzinga 78′)
Šiauliai: Baliutavičius – Mandic, Gaspuitis, Dapkus, Sadzoute – Šimkus, Benny Silva (Komissarov 83′) – Mičevičius (Dovydaitis 64′), Romanovskij (Kubilinskas 89′), Jankauskas (Petravičius 83′) – Klimavičius
Referee: Kęstutis Bartuškevičius
| # | Club | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Hegelmann FC | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 21 |
| 2 | Kauno Žalgiris | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 18 |
| 3 | FK Sūduva | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 18 |
| 4 | FC Džiugas Telšiai | 10 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 18 |
| 5 | FA Šiauliai | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 15 |
| 6 | FK Banga Gargždai | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 14 |
| 7 | FK Žalgiris | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | -1 | 12 |
| 8 | FK Panevėžys | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | -3 | 11 |
| 9 | FK Riteriai | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -1 | 10 |
| 10 | DFK Dainava Alytus | 10 | 0 | 2 | 8 | -12 | 2 |