Ventspils victorious in Latvian Cup final

FK Ventspils triumphed 2-1 against local rivals SK Liepājas Metalurgs to clinch their sixth Latvian Cup from a seventh final.

The pouring rain that plagued Riga on Saturday stopped just before kick-off as a crowd of 1,100 spectators came to Skonto Stadium to witness another exciting Kurzeme derby. They were not to be short-changed in terms of entertainment, as defender Kaspars Dubra scored a dramatic added-time winner to give Ventspils the bragging rights.

From the outset Ventspils controlled possession, but Jānis Intenbergs' men soaked up early pressure before stunning Ventspils with their first real chance, centre-back Antons Jemeļins converting Ilja Šadčins' cross on 43 minutes.

Despite the blow, Jurģis Pučinskis' charges regrouped and battled back in the second half. They eventually levelled on 72 minutes through Vadim Yanchuk, and the relentless Ventspils troops were rewarded with the winner in added time time when Dubra fired a rebound into the top corner - his first goal since joining Ventspils a year ago.

In stark contrast to Ventspils' impressive showpiece record, Metalurgs have won just once in eight cup finals, having succumbed to Ventspils in three of them.