RIGA - The sun is starting to shine in Riga, women's skirts are getting shorter and the start of the Latvian Football Federation soccer season is here, all of which are sure signs that spring is around the corner.
Likewise, a sure sign of the fall in several months' time will be that Skonto FC will be crowned league champions once again.
The 14th LFF soccer season kicked off on April 4 and according to the federation's Web site, Skonto has won all of them. Yes, all of them. Never let it be said that the Latvian Premier League isn't nail bitingly competitive.
The simple fact is, Skonto is one of just three teams in the league with the money, talent, and resources to stay on top, which is precisely what it's done with ruthless efficiency
The club cashed in on hero of the hour Maris Verpakovskis by selling him to Dynamo Kiev for an undisclosed amount, but that probably won't matter much. The highly talented striker signed a five-year contract with the Ukrainian champions and has already made an impact for them by scoring a goal in every game he has played in.
Apart from Skonto there are seven other teams in the league, including a new team from Daugavpils called FK Ditton, which replaces FK Gauja. Gauja had to back out of the league earlier this year due to financial problems.
Ditton is nowhere near the power house clubs like Skonto or FK Ventspils, but it should be interesting to have two teams in Daugavpils fight it out for bragging rites in the city. The other team from Daugavpils, FC Dinaburg, beat FK Riga 2-1 in its home opener.
So after the first day of the season the league standings are pretty much as one would expect. FHK Liepajas Metalurgs, Skonto and Ventspils occupy the top three spots, where they will likely remain in one combination or another until the end of the season.
At the bottom of the heap is FK Auda (Riga), which was beaten 3-0 by Skonto and newcomers Ditton, which is in last place. It wasn't a good start for the newcomers, who were thrashed 5-1 by Liepajas Metalurgs.
The closest game of the opening day was Ventspils against FK Jurmala. Ventspils crawled out of a 1-2 hole to win the game 3-2. Ventspils' Lithuanian player Deimants Bicka had the honor of scoring the first goal of the season, when he knocked one home in the sixth minute.
On April 7, Jurmala will host Skonto, Ventspils will travel to Daugavpils to play Dinaburg and Ditton will visit FK Riga. Auda will welcome Liepajas Metalurgs to Riga on April 8.
