APR off to flying start in Peace Cup

Result APR 3-0 La Jeunesse reigning Peace Cup champions APR overcame second division side La Jeunesse 3-0 in an emphatic triumph yesterday, at the Kicukiro Stadium to send them into the last 16. Striker Issa Bigirimana opened the scoring in the 20th minute to give the army side an early lead as his side dominated possession with forward Bertrand Iradukunda on the right wing and Patrick Sibomana on the left flank causing problems to their lowly opponents who did well to contain them in the opening 45 minutes. However, a dip in concentration, two minutes into the second half saw APR striker Bernabe Mubumbyi make it 2-0 to give APR a comfortable lead and in the 79th minute, Bigirimana granted the army side a 3-0 victory to set up a date with Bugesera in the round of 16 on June 17. APR assistant coach Vincent Mashami explained that he was impressed with his side’s performance despite the absence of regular starters like Jean Baptiste Mugiraneza, Emery Bayisenge and Michel Rusheshangoga who were rested to give an opportunity to other players like Yves Kimenyi who started in goal with Eric Rutanga and Abdul Rwatubyaye in defense. Mashami, also the assistant coach of the Amavubi, said the move to exclude majority of the regular starters was to give them time off to recuperate from the recent CAF U-23 Championship/Rio 2016 Olympic qualifiers in order to prepare for a busy week ahead as the senior men’s national team competes in the Commemoration Cup that kicks off tomorrow before they prepare for the first 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier scheduled for the weekend of June 13-14 in Maputo. “We saw that the players wanted to win, they played well and they showed this. We cannot say that it was an easy game because we played against a very good team and we were kept on our toes. We won because we were disciplined which helped us to emerge victorious,” mentioned Mashami. La Jeunesse coach Claude Rwaka said, “We played well especially in the first 45 minutes but as the game went on, there was a clear difference in experience. They started playing competitive football just recently and this was the biggest match of their football career so it is understandable really especially against a team like APR.” Meanwhile, in the other round of 16 fixtures, Isonga will face AS Kigali while Rayon Sports will be up against SEC Academy. Police takes on Sunrise while SC Kiyovu will be up against SORWATHE. Espoir face Vision Jeunesse while Musanze host Etincelles and Mukura take on Gicumbi. editorial@newtimes.co.rw