A 94th minute strike from defender Saidi Iragire broke the hearts of Rayon Sports as they were held to a pulsating 2-2 draw by Amagaju FC at Kigali Pele Stadium on Friday, August 23. The result means that the Blues have failed to register a win from their opening two league matches. Coach Robertinho started the game without a striker as he used Abdul Rahman Rukundo as a false 9 with Fiston Ishimwe and Junior Elenga supplying him balls from the wings. Amagaju also played a 4-2-3-1 formation with striker Malanda Destin as the lone ranger upfront. The game started with Rayon Sports having the better share of possession as they pinned the visitors into their own half. The first chance of the game came in the 8th minute when skipper Kevin Muhire picked a loose ball from midfield before dribbling past three Amagaju players. He drifted left and delivered a fine cross but the connection from Rukundo missed the post by inches. Muhire, who established himself as a major threat for the Amagaju, engineered space for himself in midfield after disposing Emmanuel Tuyishime off the ball, he turned and fired a shot from 30 yards which went over the bar in the 14th minute. Rayon continued their onslaught. Aziz Bassane fired a ferocious drive from 25 yards which goalkeeper Clement Twagirumukiza saved in the 17th minute. His exploits earned him plaudits from the fans. The Blues were in total control as Amagaju failed to trouble their back line. Rukundo saw a flying header missed the post in the 26th minute as he looked to score against his former side. Amagaju started to defend as a unit as they aimed to keep the Rayon Sports front three at bay. Edouard Ndayishimiye was booked in the 32nd minute for a foul on Olivier Niyonzima after he hacked him down. The visitors then had a glorious chance in the 40th minute but Ndayishimiye made a late appeal to a fine cross from Jean Claude Dusabe as the ball went wide. Twagirumukiza again made two brilliant saves to deny Rayon Sports the opening goal in the 44th and 45th minutes. With one minute of additional time left to end the first half, Aimable Nsabimana put Rayon 1-0 ahead after connecting beautifully to Kevin Muhire's corner near the first post, giving the home side the lead before both teams headed for halftime break. The second half begun with Rayon maintaining their dominance with fine interposition play to the point that Amagaju struggled to cope with their attacking threat making a couple fouls that led to bookings. Cyrille Sebangenzi was booked for a foul on Muhire in the 49th minute. Ndayishimiye also received a yellow card in the same moment for arguing with the referee. Distin also attracted a yellow card in the 51st minute for tripping Olivier Niyonzima from behind. But the visitors remained resilient as they tried to also attack pushing for an equalizer. In the 64th minute, Rayon coach Robertinho brought on Adama Bagayoko for Rukundo who was virtually lost in the second half. Nsabimana also soared high above his marker to head a corner, but his effort went off target in the 70th minute. Rayons thwarted a series of chances, and they were punished otherwise. Substitute Rashid Mapoli restored parity for Amagaju against the run of play with a superb but harmless drive in the 73rd minute which goalkeeper Patient Ndikuriyo failed to save. The goal brought restored confidence among Amagaju players who hence started to bombard the Rayon's defence in the penalty area with series of attacks. In the 80th minute, Rayon brought on Jesus Paul for Fiston Ishimwe as the tried to find a cutting edge around Amagaju's impressive defensive play. Adama Bagayoko found space in midfield and pulled a trigger from 25 yards which goalkeeper Twagirumukiza had no answer as Rayon went 2-1 up. The Blues fans were on their feet as they chanted and cheered their team up after the goal. The final five minutes of the game saw Rayon pushing for the third goal but resorted to rough play and attracted bookings. Amagaju skipper Tharcisse Masudi was sent off for a second yellow card in the 88th minute following a foul on Muhire. Rayon brought on Ally Serumogo for Ombrorenga Fitina in the 89th minute in the nerve wrecking final moments. Amagaju refused to die even after they were reduced to 10 men as Saidi Iragire fired a fine effort inside the box from a corner kick to make it 2-2 in the 94th minute. Seraphin Kiza had a chance to win the day for Rayon in the 95th minute but he was ruled offside as referee Samuel Uwikunda blew his final whistle for the end of the game as the game ended in a 2-2 thriller. In an earlier kickoff, Theodor Malipangou netted a 34th minute penalty as Gasogi United pipped Marines FC 1-0 to make it two wins in as many games to maintain their perfect start to the top tier league.
