Now we can relax a bit, can’t we?

After waiting for so long, Sellas Tetteh finally gets his first win of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign with Amavubi Stars…maybe now we can relax a bit. Like all his predecessors, Tetteh was always to be under pressure when he took over the reign last year, and indeed he has been under immerse strain to get off the mark. It took too long to come, and despite the pressure from the demanding fans and press, the Ghanaian has managed to handle it all in a dignified manner, unlike his most immediate predecessor Branko Tucak, Tetteh has not lost his plot. The 3-1win over Burundi on Saturday at Kigali Regional stadium, Nyamirambo has calmed the waters a bit as far as the coach and his team is concerned, but the battle to qualify to the finals in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon is well and far from over. Before this win, which came in-front of thousands of Rwandans including President Paul Kagame, some people were starting to wonder whether indeed Tetteh is the right man for the hot seat, which becomes hotter every after another defeat. When the 54-year-old Ghanaian tactician signed on the dotted lines to be Amavubi’s next coach after the sacking of Tucak, early last year, I wrote in my article about him that he, unlike all his predecessors, would be afforded more time to stamp his mark on the team. And nothing has changed. Despite heavy defeats to Ivory Coast and Benin the first two qualifiers, coupled with dismal showing at CHAN finals in Sudan as well as the Cecafa Challenge Cup in Tanzania, Tetteh’s position was never under any threat, especially from his bosses, at least according to a highly placed Ferwafa official. Which means, the win over old rivals Burundi in what was a do or die clash, will buy the Fifa U-20 World Cup winner not only more time to stamp his mark on the team, but also leave him and his players a bit more relaxed as they prepare for the last three qualifiers, two away (Burundi and Benin) and one at home (Ivory Coast). It wasn’t the most clinical performance from Tetteh’s men, and to be fair to the Burundians, who had seven professionals on the team compared to Amavubi’s two, the final score line doesn’t tell the true picture of the game, which the visitors controlled, especially in the opening half any hour. They could have been 2-0 up by the time Jean Claude Iranzi netted Amavubi’s opener, which was the team’s first goal of the campaign. It was also evident that the return to the team of Patrick Mafisango, Mbuyu Twite in defence and Elias Uzamukunda at attack made a very big difference to the side that wobbled against Benin at Amahoro stadium. The win moves Rwanda off the bottom of group H into third place with three points, one behind second placed Benin and two better than Burundi. Benin and group leaders Ivory Coast, who have six points, meet on Sunday (today) in Accra, a game that if the Elephants win, will leave the battles for second place wide open. And with over two months to prepare for the next game, the return leg against Burundi, Tetteh and his team are in the best possible position to pull themselves back into the race, but only if they treat yesterday’s game as if it was the start of their campaign. As part of their preparations, Tetteh please must not show his players videos of the Ivory Coast and Benin games, only the one of Saturday and they will be good to go in Bujumbura, after all, history favors Rwanda, who have never lost to Burundi in recent history. What you think? nku78@yahoo.com