AS Kigali Women Football Club will have to wait and win their final league match against Kayonza WFC to be crowned 2023 Women’s topflight league champions after Inyemera WFC were awarded three points to close the gap to the top by just one point after winning their forfeit appeal against Kamonyi.

AS Kigali thought they had won their record 12th women football league title after Saturday’s 5-0 humiliating victory over IPM WFC at Kimisagara football ground saw them open a four-point lead at the top of the table with 50 points.

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The reigning champions will, however, have to cut their title celebrations short and wait for the final match day fixture after Inyemera closed the four-point gap to the top to just one point with one match day left.

Inyemera had filed a complaint to the football governing body (Ferwafa) after they noticed that their goalkeeper Isabelle Tuyizere joined Kamonyi without their consent.

The club claimed that Tuyizere was ineligible to make the squad list of the Kamonyi team that beat them 1-0 in the league and hence asked them to withdraw Kamonyi’s victory and charge them in favor of Inyemera.

"After our match against Kamonyi WFC, we noticed that their squad list featured a player who was playing for them yet she still had a contract with us,” claimed Inyemera WFC president Ancille Munyankaka.

"Tuyizere was our player. When she told us that she wanted to return to school in Kamonyi sometime back, we told her that we would be open to negotiate a loan move to Kamonyi WFC to help her continue playing while studying. But we were all surprised to see her in the Kamonyi squad during our match without any communication from herself nor the team,” she added.

Inyemera filed an appeal to the FA which ruled in favor of the team and awarded them three points from the match that they initially lost while Kamonyi was requested to return their player.

AS Kigali WFC remain favorites to win the title as they must beat minnows Kayonza WFC in their make-or-break final match day fixture while any slip up would see Inyemera clinch their maiden league title should they beat ES Mutunda.

AS Kigali head coach Theogenie Mukamusonera told Times Sport that her team won’t be affected by the decision and remains confident that her team is destined to win the title sooner or later.

"Our momentum won’t be changed by this, we will have to play our last match with the same energy as always and we hope to win it and retain our trophy,” she said.