McKinstry eyes double win against Mauritius

Friday Swaziland vs Zimbabwe 3pmGabon vs Sierra Leone 3:30pmNigeria vs Egypt 5pmIvory Coast vs Sudan 6:30pmMauritania vs Gambia Tunisia vs Togo 7pmGuinea vs Malawi Mali vs Eq. Guinea 9pmAlgeria vs Ethiopia 9:30pm Amavubi head coach Johnny McKinstry says his team is aiming to garner maximum six points from the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier double header against Mauritius. The two teams square-off tomorrow at Anjalay Stadium in Belle-Vue in the first of two meetings in a space of four days, before the return leg in Kigali on Tuesday, March 29. Speaking to the press before the team’s departure to Mauritius on Thursday, the Northern Irishman said, “Our main goal is to win both games to keep our qualification hopes alive.” “We need maximum points from both games,” he noted, before warning that, “We expect two tough encounters, make no mistake about it; Mauritius will fight for every ball over the two games. We are not under estimating them because they are a stubborn team, having drawn with Togo, Burundi and Kenya in some of their most recent matches. ” “As such, no one should take them lightly. We need to be at our best to ensure that we get positive results. We have much information about the opponents, though; you can’t know everything about the opponents 100%,” the 30-year old tactician explained. Fresh from signing a two-year contract extension, which keeps him in charge of Amavubi until 2018, McKinstry admitted that he will be satisfied with a slim 1-0 win in both games as long as the team gets a maximum six points. McKinstry named the final 18-player squad on Thursday with the notable absentees being Gor Mahia striker Jacques Tuyisenge, who will miss both games because of a groin injury he sustained during the 2016 CHAN final tournament held in Rwanda last month. The other is influential center back and dead ball specialist, Emery Bayisenge, who misses Saturday’s first leg clash through suspension for accumulating two yellow cards. But there is a first international call-up for midfielder, Muhadjiri Hakizimana, the league top scorer with 9 goals in fifteen games for Mukura. The coach admitted that it wasn’t an easy task for him and his coaching staff to pick the final squad (18 players) because of the competitiveness within the provisional 26-man squad. Among the players, who failed to make the cut include goalkeeper Olivier Kwizera (APR), Yussufu Habimana (Mukura), Rayon Sports’ forward Dominique Savio Nshuti, Innocent Habyarimana and Danny Usengimana (both Police FC). Both teams have met twice and Rwanda won both encounters during the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. Amavubi are second in Group H standing with 3 points ahead of Mauritius on goal difference while Ghana tops the table with six points, whereas Mozambique is fourth without a point after two rounds of qualifiers. Final squad: Goal keepers: Eric Ndayishimiye (Rayon Sports), Marcel Nzarora (Police FC) Defenders: Abouba Sibomana (Gor Mahia, Kenya,) Fitina Omborenga (SC Kiyovu), Salomon Nirisarike (STVV), Michel Rusheshangoga (APR FC), Celestin Ndayishimiye (Mukura VS), Abdul Rwatubyaye (APR FC) Mid fielders: Yannick Mukunzi (APR FC), Jean Baptiste Mugiraneza (Azam FC), Jean Claude Iranzi (APR FC), Haruna Niyonzima (Young Africans, Tanzania), Imrana Nshimiyimana (Police FC), Soter Kayumba (AS Kigali) and Muhadjiri Hakizimana. Forwards: Ernest Sugira (AS Kigali), Quentin Kwame Rushenguziminega (Laussane Sports, Swiss) and Elias Uzamukunda (Le Mans, France). editorial@newtimes.co.rw