Karekezi passed fit to play in Peace Cup final

APR coach Ernest Brandts has been boosted with news that his captain Olivier Karekezi has been given the go ahead by club doctors to play in tomorrow’s MTN Peace Cup final against rivals Police.

Monday, July 02, 2012
Olivier Karekezi, seen here jumping out of a challenge by Etoile du Sahel defender, has been cleared to play in tomorrowu2019s MTN Peace Cup final. The New Times/T. Kisambira.

MTN Peace Cup TomorrowPolice vs APR 3:30pmAPR coach Ernest Brandts has been boosted with news that his captain Olivier Karekezi has been given the go ahead by club doctors to play in tomorrow’s MTN Peace Cup final against rivals Police.The burly forward has been out with a thigh injury since Amavubi’s 2-0 loss to Nigeria but players like Papy Faty, Lionel St. Preux and Kabange Twite have stepped up the mantle to take the military side to its seventh final."Of course am happy to have him (Karekezi) back. He gives us more attacking options. I also expect Kabange, Lionel and Mbuyu to shake off the minor knocks they suffered in the last game."However, having a full squad is not a guarantee that we will win easily because both teams know each other pretty well. I expect a very close match with few goals,” said Brandts, who has already guided APR to the league title.The two sides clash in the final for the second year running.  APR defeated Police last year 4-2 in extra time but the law enforcers have improved since last year under the tutelage of Serb coach Goran Kopunovic.The good news for Police is that even before they play the cup final, they are already assured of a place in next year’s CAF Confederations Cup after finishing second in the league and reaching the cup final.