Marked for Ignas Simkus
From our football correspondent
Crisis
The terraces17 Jan 2028
The mood at Utenis has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Transfer targets17 Jan 2028
Trakai wanted more than $80.0K and the board would not go there. Walked away, for now, which in a transfer window means until somebody blinks.
Transfer targets17 Jan 2028
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Stumbras have kept their man, and Utenis go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad17 Jan 2028
A row about effort at Utenis
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Lukas Simkus was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad17 Jan 2028
Tempers go at Utenis
Heinrich Meyer was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market17 Jan 2028
Utenis have let the market know Arnas Dubickas can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom27 Dec 2027
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Utenis
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad27 Dec 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces20 Dec 2027
Anger at Utenis spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Squad20 Dec 2027
Tempers go at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad20 Dec 2027
Lukas Simkus falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market6 Dec 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market6 Dec 2027
As if he never left: Justas Dapkus returns
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Justas Dapkus is a Utenis player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Justas Dapkus arrives at the club he grew up with
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Justas Dapkus has, at Utenis, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Squad6 Dec 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad6 Dec 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Justas Dapkus and Utenis agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom29 Nov 2027
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Utenis
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad29 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 Nov 2027
A row about effort at Utenis
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ignas Simkus was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces22 Nov 2027
The mood at Utenis has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Squad22 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad22 Nov 2027
Lukas Simkus falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout22 Nov 2027
Lukas Simkus gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout22 Nov 2027
Heinrich Meyer knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Heinrich Meyer trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Squad22 Nov 2027
The shrug has gone, the language is coming, and he now argues in training like somebody who expects to be here next year. Half a signing's value is this and none of it appears on a fee.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match15 Nov 2027
Utenis sink to position 8
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Edvinas Barauskas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A row about effort at Utenis
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ignas Simkus was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout15 Nov 2027
Lukas Simkus knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Utenis, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad15 Nov 2027
He goes off to be somebody else’s player for a fortnight. Utenis lose him for the window and would like him returned in the condition he left.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A call-up flatters the player and the club that produced him in the same breath. Utenis would like him back in one piece and know they will not be consulted.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market8 Nov 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Utenis, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad8 Nov 2027
19 days out for Saulius Cernych after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Utenis will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad8 Nov 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces25 Oct 2027
The mood at Utenis has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Squad25 Oct 2027
A fracture rules Saulius Cernych out for 33 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Utenis will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad25 Oct 2027
Words exchanged at Utenis
Rokas Lasickas and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match18 Oct 2027
Utenis sink to position 8
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 40 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Words exchanged at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad4 Oct 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 24 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Utenis
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Market4 Oct 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Utenis, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Tempers go at Utenis
Edvinas Barauskas was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market4 Oct 2027
11 months to run and not a word offered. A club that lets the calendar negotiate for it usually ends up losing to the calendar.
The dugout4 Oct 2027
Lukas Simkus gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Arnas Vaitkunas has moved up it.
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
Utenis pull $1.6M back off the table
The money that was there in the summer is not there now. Nobody upstairs calls this a change of ambition, and everybody downstairs reads it as one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces27 Sep 2027
Supporters organise against the Utenis board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Squad27 Sep 2027
A fracture rules Linas Dubickas out for 31 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Utenis will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market27 Sep 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad27 Sep 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad27 Sep 2027
Ignas Simkus falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout27 Sep 2027
Lukas Simkus knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Utenis, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad13 Sep 2027
A fracture rules Linas Dubickas out for 47 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Utenis will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad13 Sep 2027
19 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad13 Sep 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets13 Sep 2027
Utenis ran out of time with Trakai. The paperwork was open when the deadline passed, and a transfer that was almost done is now a transfer that never happened.
Squad13 Sep 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout13 Sep 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match22 May 2027
No end in sight to Utenis's wait for a win
14 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Utenis has to find a result from somewhere.
The dugout24 May 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Match22 May 2027
No clean sheets in sight for Utenis
7 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Squad24 May 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad24 May 2027
Ignas Sernas falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match22 May 2027
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Looking ahead24 May 2027
Utenis face Atlantas in the game that matters most
Two sides from the bottom of the table, three points, and an afternoon that will be described afterwards as a relegation decider by whoever loses it.
The dugout24 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ignas Simkus, and the manager let it.
The dugout24 May 2027
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 1‑2, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match10 Apr 2027
The wait goes on for Utenis
8 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Words exchanged at Utenis
Aidas Paulauskas and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Ignas Sernas falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match10 Apr 2027
Atlantas left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑2 defeat, delivered by Karolis Cernych to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Linas Dubickas, and the manager let it.
Squad12 Apr 2027
The one goal every signing is asked about until it comes. It has come, and a press-conference question has been retired.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Edvinas Barauskas trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Player ratings12 Apr 2027
Successful dribbles: 11. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad22 Mar 2027
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 10 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match20 Mar 2027
Nowhere to hide for Utenis
2‑5 against Suduva, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
Two goals and a mark of 8.73 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Match20 Mar 2027
No end in sight to Utenis's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Utenis has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad22 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Ignas Sernas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match20 Mar 2027
7 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Utenis and Suduva in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Match20 Mar 2027
No clean sheets in sight for Utenis
4 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match6 Mar 2027
Chastening afternoon for Utenis
A 0‑6 beating by Kauno Zalgiris was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Market8 Mar 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Utenis can pretend not to have heard.
Squad8 Mar 2027
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Aidas Paulauskas and Utenis agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Tempers go at Utenis
Ignas Sernas was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Match6 Mar 2027
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 6 goals between Utenis and Kauno Zalgiris, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
The dugout8 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Arnas Dubickas
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad8 Mar 2027
A row about effort at Utenis
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ignas Simkus was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Boardroom8 Mar 2027
Nobody left the Utenis dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad1 Mar 2027
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Tadas Jankauskas, and the manager let it.
Squad1 Mar 2027
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Deadline passes with 0 signed and 0 gone
That is the business done at Utenis until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad1 Feb 2027
15 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Vikintas Dubickas is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
Karolis Valskis has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Utenis will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Deividas Sernas trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad25 Jan 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 19 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market25 Jan 2027
Utenis say no — this time
The offer from Auckland City for Edvinas Barauskas was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Squad25 Jan 2027
A falling-out at Utenis
Ignas Sernas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad18 Jan 2027
26 days out for Linas Dubickas after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Utenis will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
Ignas Sernas: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Utenis have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Words exchanged at Utenis
Ignas Sernas and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad7 Dec 2026
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 69 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad7 Dec 2026
A row about effort at Utenis
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ignas Simkus was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad9 Nov 2026
Linas Dubickas breaks a bone — 100 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 100 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
Ignas Sernas asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Andrius Slavickas is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
Karolis Valskis has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Utenis will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market9 Nov 2026
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Andrius Slavickas may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market26 Oct 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Utenis can pretend not to have heard.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Words exchanged at Utenis
Ignas Sernas and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Ignas Simkus falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad12 Oct 2026
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 17 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Ignas Simkus falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad5 Oct 2026
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 24 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market5 Oct 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad5 Oct 2026
A falling-out at Utenis
Ignas Sernas and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Sep 2026
Tempers go at Utenis
Ignas Sernas was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Loan watch21 Sep 2026
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Utenis, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
Atlantas wanted more than $54.0K and the board would not go there. Walked away, for now, which in a transfer window means until somebody blinks.
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Stumbras have kept their man, and Utenis go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ignas Simkus is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Saulius Cernych, and the manager let it.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
Karolis Valskis has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Utenis will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market14 Sep 2026
Utenis opened the door and nobody walked through it. So Vikintas Dubickas stays — listed, trained, and available — while both sides mark the days to January on the same calendar.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad17 Aug 2026
11 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Match12 Aug 2026
The small margins put Utenis out
Out, 1‑2 to Zalgiris, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Ignas Sernas in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Utenis this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words at Utenis training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Arnas Vaitkunas is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout17 Aug 2026
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout17 Aug 2026
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑2 defeat, delivered by Karolis Cernych to a room that had heard them before.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
Atlantas have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
A loan enquiry to Trakai: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Squad17 Aug 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Heinrich Meyer commits to Utenis for another 3 years.