RELEGATION battling side La Jeunesse are convinced they will not return to the second division despite lying bottom of the national league standings with only six rounds of matches remaining.

With the dreaded relegation to the lower division looking more realistic than surviving it, La Jeunesse coach Yves Rwasamanzi remains optimistic.

Speaking to Times Sport yesterday, Rwasamanzi, who is also the U-20 national team assistant coach said that his struggling team can stay alive in the topflight division but only if they win their remaining fixtures.

"Despite being at the bottom of the standings, we can still stay up, nothing is determined yet. Our destiny remains firmly in our hands.

"If we win the remaining fixtures, we will have the chance to move away from the relegation zone,” Rwasamanzi said.

La Jeunesse, who are bottom of league table standings with 11 points, must win the remaining matches to consolidate their chances of staying up.

Rwasamanzi’s team still have to play against Police (April 18), Rayon Sport (April 25), Amagaju (May 3), Mukura (May 9), Marines (May 17) and AS Kigali (June 28).

If the Nyamirambo based club win these matches, they will earn 29 points, a feat which would enable them to stay in the top flight league for next season.

La Jeunesse suffered a major blow to the chance of escaping the relegation zone when they lost heavily 0-8 to nine-time league winners APR on Tuesday.

Wednesday’s 5-0 win over Kibuye kept Atraco’s one point lead at the top of the league table and their hopes of securing a second successive title on track.

Ugandan internationals Johnson Bagoole and Hamis Kitagenda recorded a brace each while the league top marksman Jean Lomami increased on his goal tally to 14 thanks to a 23rd minute strike.

The victory extended Atraco’s lead to 37 points, one ahead of nine times league winner APR, who are second position with 36 points, one better than Rayon in third, who also beat Amagaju 3-1 on Tuesday.

Jimmy Gatete, Yusuf Ndayishimiye and Theoneste Muhayimana were on target for the Blues.

SC Kiyovu increased their hopes of avoiding relegation by beating Police 2-0 on Wednesday for their fourth win of the season.

The relegation battle will go down to the wire as Police, AS Kigali, Kibuye, Amagaju, Marines, Kiyovu are only separated by two points.

Meanwhile, the league has been put on hold to pave way for the national team which has already started preparations for the third and final round of the 2010 World/Africa cup qualifiers.

The league will resume on April 18 after the Amavubi Stars play Algeria in the opening qualifier on March 28 in Kigali.

Ends