On a sunny Sunday afternoon at the compact Riga 49th Secondary School Stadium, Valmiera FC faced the home side’s reserve team, JDFS Alberts-2.
It became clear early on that the hosts weren’t planning to offer any easy gifts — though Valmiera seemed to do exactly that. In just the 3rd minute, Valmiera goalkeeper Haralds Kalniņš made an unnecessary mistake, colliding with an opposing player while chasing a ball that was already heading out of play. The referee wasted no time pointing to the spot, and Alberts’ captain Jēkabs Māris Šusts calmly converted the penalty — 0:1.
The rest of the first half offered little excitement, with both sides battling hard in midfield but struggling to create meaningful chances. That pattern held until the break.
However, the second half sparked to life — thanks largely to Yusuke Omori, Valmiera’s Japanese winger, who led two dangerous counterattacks. First, in the 48th minute, he slalomed into the box and was brought down. Mārcis Ērglis, as cool as ever, converted the resulting penalty — 1:1.
Just four minutes later, Omori again drove at the defense. After being taken down just outside the box, Ēriks Maurs-Boks pounced on the loose ball and curled a brilliant shot into the top-right corner with his left — 2:1 for Valmiera.
The lead was short-lived. In the 59th minute, after a defensive lapse from Valmiera, Roberts Šūtavs met a back-post cross to level the game at 2:2.
The remainder of the match was hard-fought, with Valmiera pushing for a winner but failing to break down a resolute Alberts defense. With no clear chances on either end, the game ended in a draw — Valmiera’s first dropped points of the season.
Up next, Valmiera FC returns home this Friday at 19:00 for the Latvian Cup second round against FK Cēsis. Fans can expect a true cup battle and an electric atmosphere at the Valmiera Olympic Centre Stadium.
