Two goals from Cameroonian attacker Leandre Willy Onana helped Rayon Sports come from behind to beat Gasogi 2-1 on Saturday at Bugesera Stadium to climb at the top of the Rwanda Premier League table.
Gasogi had an upper hand on the game with an early lead in the first 15 minutes but it was the Blues who laughed last as star forward Onana equalize before the halftime break and then scored a late winner to ensure that the visitors took home three important points to move at the summit.
The forward saved the day for Rayon and he was rewarded for his impressive display as supporters threw bundles notes of money towards him shortly after the full time whistle.
The first half began on a bright note for both sides but Gasogi looked threatening in attack with their front trio of Kevin Ishimwe, Theodore Malipangu and Maxwell Djoumekou putting pressure on the Rayon defenders.
Paul Kiwanuka’s men broke the deadlock in the 13th minute through Djoumekou after goalkeeper Gael Cyuzuzo found him with a long ball. He beat his marker Isaac Mitima and fired into the net but the linesman raised his flag for offside.
Ishimwe and Augustine Kaneza protested against the linesman’s controversial decision to disallow what looked like a clear goal but they had to be restrained by their captain Guy Bahati.
Gasogi piled more pressure on Rayon which yielded dividends as they scored in the 18th minute.
A quick throw from Abdulkarim Nizigiyimana found Ishimwe who beat Didier Mucyo to the ball before sending in a cross which Hakim Bugingo beautifully connected into the net.
Rayon could have netted the equalizer against the run of play in the 23rd minute but Moussa Essenu was slow as he failed to convert Heritier Luvumbu’s cross.
Onana, who was having a tough time dealing with Nizigiyimana had to move to a more central attacking role and it worked to perfection as he scored the equalizer on the stroke of half time.
The Cameroonian beautifully collected a pass from Joackim Ojera and placed it beyond the reach of goalie Cyuzuzo after defender Aimable Kwizera had failed to clear it.
The first half ended with the scores at 1-1 although Gasogi had been the better side in terms of ball possession.
Few minutes after the start of second, Gasogi’s Maxwell Djoumek, who had been leading the Gasogi attack assumed a different role in the second half as he moved to the left side of attack.
His pace, power and artistry caused problems for Rayon defenders as he set up Kaneza Augustine but his effort was saved by goalkeeper Adolphe Hakizimana in the 65th minute to the relief of the visitors’ traveling fans.
Francis Haringingo ,on the other hand, deployed moved more men upfront as his team pushed to break what looked like an compact Gasogi defense.
Onana, who had an incredible afternoon in Bugesera, collected a fantastic pass from Isaac Mitima before hitting a long range strike that found the back of the net in the 85th minute to send Rayon’s supporters into frenzy
After conceding the second goal, Gasogi decided to go all out pushing for an equalizer. They brought on Godwin Blessing for Theodore Malipangu who had been a pale shadow of himself throughout the game.
Rayon held their might at the back in the final minutes of the game with great defending until the referee blew his final whistle.
The win has now moved Rayon temporarily on top of the table with 39 points as pending APR FC’s result ahead of their Sunday clash with in-form Etincelles who are unbeaten in the last ten games.
Other games
In a mid day kick off, striker Onesme Twizerimana scored a brace to help Gorilla FC defeat relegation bound Espoir while Kiyovu Sports came from behind to thrash Marines FC 3-1.
Marines took the lead in the 10th minute before Kiyovu came back in the second half to score three through Riyad Noordien and a brace from super substitute Bienvenue Mugenzi.
At the Huye Stadium, visitors Rwamagana City put their financial crisis behind to record a surprise 1-0 win over Mukura Victory Sports at Huye Stadium.