After beating AS Kigali 2-1 on Sunday, Rayon Sports are gearing up for a run of good results and have a good chance to go all the way in the 2013/14 national football league, their captain Faudi Ndayisenga has said.
THURSDAY - 3.30 pm
APR vs EspoirMukura vs Amagaju Etincelles vs Kiyovu Gicumbi vs Marines Rayon Sports vs Esperance Police vs Muhanga AS Kigali vs Musanze
After beating AS Kigali 2-1 on Sunday, Rayon Sports are gearing up for a run of good results and have a good chance to go all the way in the 2013/14 national football league, their captain Faudi Ndayisenga has said.
On this Boxing Day, the blues, who are third on the league log with 22 points, one point adrift of leaders APR, take on second-from-bottom side Esperance at Amahoro stadium.
Ndayisenga netted the winning goal for resurgent Didier Gomes da Rosa’s team after Meddie Kagere had opened the scoring, effectively toppling the City of Kigali-sponsored side from Turbo King Football league summit.
The win took the reigning champions above AS Kigali, who started the last weekend as league leaders but ended it in third, after losing to Rayon with APR beating Nyamagabe 2-1.
"Sunday’s win (against AS Kigali) was a Christmas gift to our fans, who are always behind us. But, most importantly, it moved us closer to the top where we want and deserve to be,” said the Burundi international.
"With the season almost the halfway mark, we’re happy with our position and the points we have accumulated so far, we’re just one point behind table-toppers APR and just need to stay focused because I think we have got the momentum to push on for the rest of the season,” observed the former APR player.
The midfielder added: "We are not getting carried away, but that win on Sunday was a reward for the players’ efforts and very important for us and the supporters. We showed resilience, which is a great sign of togetherness – between the coach, players and the fans.”
"If we keep working hard, we will have a great chance to achieve our goal. We are in a good position, we’ll try to do our best to win as many games as we can,” he added.
Against the champions, Esperance, who have won just two and drawn one of their 11 matches so far, clearly have their work cut out.
Leaders APR will be looking to extend their winning streak against sixth-placed Espoir at Mumena; Etincelles host in-form SC Kiyovu at Umuganda; Jean Baptiste Kayiranga’s Gicumbi host Marines; Police take on Muhanga at Kicukiro turf, while AS Kigali will be up against Musanze at Stade de Kigali.