Amavubi start CHAN quest

Today’s fixtures Group D Rwanda vs Senegal 4.30pmAngola vs Tunisia 7pm AMAVUBI open their Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) campaign this afternoon with a tricky game against Senegal in Port Sudan. The Wasps, who have been trying to acclimatize to Sudanese conditions since Saturday, have one thing on the back of their minds, a good start in the competition. It has not been a smooth sailing for the wasps in the run up to the two-week event. After losing their opening 2012 Africa Nations Cup qualifiers against Ivory Coast and Benin, the team endured another patchy display in last year’s Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup in Dar-es-salaam but Amavubi head coach Sellas Tetteh is determined to put things back on track. For Amavubi, CHAN is a virgin territory which rekindles fond memories of continental football Rwanda last romanced in 2004 when they qualified for the Nations Cup in Tunisia. Heading into the contest, Senegal are slight favourites after reaching the semi-finals two years ago. The West Africans will rely on a wealth of talent drawn from ASC Diaraf, the reigning Senegal Premier League Champions along with 2009 winners ASC Linguére. Group D’s other game pits Angola against Tunisia despite repeated reports that the Northern Africans had withdrawn from the competition due to political unrest.Algeria’s referee Jamal Maimodi will handle the Rwanda-Senegal match and will be assisted by Libya’s Foad El Maghrabi and Jason Damoo from Seychelles. Libya’s Omar Ragab is the fourth official while Walter Nyamilandu Manda is the match commissioner.On Saturday, debutants South Africa and Niger opened their accounts with victories over Ghana and Zimbabwe respectively. The Amabinneplaas came from behind to beat Ghana’s Black Stars 2-1 whilst Niger tamed Zimbabwean Warriors by a lone goal. South Africa and Niger share top spot in Group B with three points apiece, with Ghana and Zimbabwe trailing with no point. This is the first Caf tournament hosted by Sudan since 1970 when they made the most of home advantage to lift the African Nations Cup. Ends

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Amavubi start CHAN quest