2008 Latvian Higher League
The 2008 Virslīga season was the 17th Virslīga season. It began on 5 April 2008 with the first round of games and ended on 9 November 2008 with the final matches of the championship and relegation rounds. Ventspils were the defending champions.
Season details
For the 2008 season the league has expanded to ten clubs, and the fixture format has changed. Due to expansion there was no relegation at the end of the 2007 season, and the top two clubs from the 1. līga 2007 season, champions FK Vindava (from Ventspils), and second placed SK Blāzma (from Rēzekne) were both promoted. From the 2008 season on, the league will be held in two rounds.
In the first round each club played all the other nine clubs twice, home and away starting with Matchday 1 on 5 April and finishing with Matchday 18 on 10 August.
In the second round there were two "mini leagues", with the top six clubs after the First Round, playing each other twice and clubs in 7th to 10th place after the First Round playing each other four times. Second round matches started on 24 August and finished on 9 November.[1][2]
At the end of the season, the club finishing bottom of the Virslīga were automatically relegated to the 1. līga, and the champions of the 1. līga were automatically promoted, taking the place of the relegated club. The club that finished next to the bottom in the Virslīga play a two-legged playoff for the final place in the Virslīga for the next season with the club that finished second in 1. līga.[1]
First round
Standings
| Pos |
Team |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
Pts | Qualification or relegation | Head-to-head |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ventspils | 18 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 33 | 6 | +27 | 40 | Qualification to championship round | |
| 2 | Skonto FC | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 28 | 19 | +9 | 36 | ||
| 3 | Dinaburg FC | 18 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 22 | 13 | +9 | 32 | ||
| 4 | FK Rīga | 18 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 28 | 27 | +1 | 30 | RĪG 2–2 LIE LIE 2–2 RĪG | |
| 5 | SK Liepājas Metalurgs | 18 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 27 | 17 | +10 | 30 | ||
| 6 | FC Daugava Daugavpils | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 27 | 22 | +5 | 24 | ||
| 7 | Vindava Ventspils | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 27 | −13 | 17 | Qualification to relegation round | |
| 8 | FK Jūrmala | 18 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 27 | −12 | 16 | ||
| 9 | Blāzma Rēzekne | 18 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 8 | 26 | −18 | 10 | ||
| 10 | Olimps/RFS | 18 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 12 | 30 | −18 | 9 |
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian)
Rules for classification:
1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th overall wins; 5th goal difference; 6th goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.
Results
| Home ╲ Away | BLĀ | DGD | DIN | JŪR | LIE | RFS | RĪG | SKO | VEN | VIN |
| Blāzma Rēzekne | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–3 | 1–1 | |
| FC Daugava Daugavpils | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 3–1 | 6–1 | 1–3 | 1–4 | 1–1 | |
| Dinaburg FC | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | |
| FK Jūrmala | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | |
| SK Liepājas Metalurgs | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 7–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | |
| Olimps/RFS | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 0–1 | |
| FK Rīga | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | |
| Skonto FC | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | |
| Ventspils | 3–0 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |
| Vindava Ventspils | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–7 |
Source: Matchday 1–9 results Matchday 10–18 results (Latvian)
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Second round
Championship round
Standings
| Pos |
Team |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ventspils (C) | 28 | 19 | 6 | 3 | 53 | 14 | +39 | 63 | 2009–10 UEFA Champions League Second qualifying round |
| 2 | SK Liepājas Metalurgs | 28 | 14 | 11 | 3 | 48 | 25 | +23 | 53 | 2009–10 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round 1 |
| 3 | Skonto FC | 28 | 15 | 7 | 6 | 43 | 31 | +12 | 52 | 2009–10 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round 1 |
| 4 | Dinaburg FC | 28 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 32 | 31 | +1 | 38 | 2009–10 UEFA Europa League First qualifying round 1 |
| 5 | FC Daugava Daugavpils | 28 | 10 | 7 | 11 | 40 | 35 | +5 | 37 | |
| 6 | FK Rīga | 28 | 10 | 3 | 15 | 36 | 55 | −19 | 33 |
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian)
Rules for classification:
1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th overall wins; 5th goal difference; 6th goals scored
1Daugava Daugavpils won the Latvian Football Cup 2008 competition, thereby qualifying for UEFA Europa League 2009–10 second qualification round. However, Daugava Daugavpils merged with Dinaburg, so the Europa League spots were redistributed based on league position.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.
Results
| Home ╲ Away | DGD | DIN | LIE | RĪG | SKO | VEN |
| FC Daugava Daugavpils | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–2 | |
| Dinaburg FC | 3–3 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–31 | |
| SK Liepājas Metalurgs | 3–1 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | |
| FK Rīga | 0–2 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | |
| Skonto FC | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 2–2 | |
| Ventspils | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 5–1 | 2–2 |
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian)
Rules for classification:
1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
1The match originally finished 0–0, but was eventually awarded with as won by a score of 3–0 to Ventspils because Dinaburg FC fielded player who was not in match protocol.[3]
Relegation round
Standings
| Pos |
Team |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FK Jūrmala | 30 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 35 | 34 | +1 | 40 | |
| 2 | Vindava Ventspils | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 27 | 41 | −14 | 36 | |
| 3 | Blāzma Rēzekne (O) | 30 | 5 | 8 | 17 | 20 | 43 | −23 | 23 | Qualification to relegation play-offs |
| 4 | Olimps/RFS (R) | 30 | 2 | 11 | 17 | 22 | 47 | −25 | 17 | Relegation to Latvian First League |
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian)
Rules for classification:
1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th overall wins; 5th goal difference; 6th goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.
Results
|
First and second games
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian) |
Third and fourth games
Source: Latvian Football Federation (Latvian) |
Relegation play-offs
Blāzma Rēzekne, the 9th placed team in the Virslīga, and 1. līga runners-up, Tranzīts Ventspils, competed in a two-legged play-off for a spot in the Virslīga 2009. Blāzma Rēzekne won 6–1 on aggregate and thereby kept their spot in the next season of the Virslīga.
15 November 2008 14:00 GMT+2 |
| Tranzīts Ventspils | 1 – 5 | Blāzma Rēzekne |
|---|---|---|
Baturinskis  42' |
Report (Latvian) |
Gramovičs 55', 64', 74' (pen.) Kurakins 70'Silovs 86' |
Topscorers
| Pos | Name | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Vits Rimkus (LAT) | FK Ventspils | 14 |
| 2 | Kristaps Grebis (LAT) | FK Liepājas Metalurgs | 13 |
| - | Oļegs Malašenoks (LAT) | FK Jūrmala | 13 |
| 4 | Andrejs Butriks (LAT) | FK Ventspils | 11 |
| 5 |  Mikalay Ryndzyuk (BLR) | Dinaburg FC | 9 |
| - |  Vladimir Dvalishvili (GEO) | Skonto FC | 9 |
References
- 1 2 Hartmanis, Martins (2007-12-01). "LMT Virsliga new season calendar published". Latvian Football Federation. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
- ↑ "LMT Virslīgas čempionāta kalendārs 2008" (in Latvian). Latvian Football Federation. 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-20.
- ↑ «Dinaburg» piešķirts tehniskais zaudējums
External links
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