Peace Cup: Onana hits brace as Rayon send Police packing

Leandre Onana was the hero on Wednesday as he scored in either half in Rayon Sports’ 3-2 Peace Cup quarter final second leg victory over Police FC at Kigali Pele Stadium to set a semifinal date with Mukura. It was an action-packed encounter before which players, fans, delegates and match officials observed a minute of silence in honor of over 100 people who died, following the night of heavy rains that caused flooding and landslides in Western and Northern provinces. ALSO READ: Rayon, Police to observe a minute of silence in honor of flood victims The two teams played cautiously in the first 10 minutes as Vincent Mashami’s men were looking for an early equalizer in an attempt to recover from last week’s 3-2 deficit in the first leg but Rayon held on to leave no spaces for the visitors to exploit. The first chance of the game instead fell to Blues’ Heritier Luvumbu whose strike was saved by Police FC goalkeeper Janvier Kwizera in the 12th minute. Police FC relied on long balls as they sought to efficiently use the pace of striker Didier Mugisha who was operating in a more central role. Rayon had cut Danny Usengimana’s effort as he drifted to the right most times to create a three-man attack when his team was attacking. Francis Haringingo’s side was, on the other hand, always dangerous anytime they moved forward. Heritier Luvumbu played in a more advanced role and provided the needed arsenals for Musa Esenu but the Ugandan wasn't sharp enough to convert them. Luvumbu finally broke the deadlock in the 36th minute to extend Rayon’s aggregate lead to the relief of the home supporters who look hungrier for a title this season. A long surging ball from midfield found Joackim Ojera on the right and the Ugandan mesmerized Eric Rutanga and left him crawling on the ground before delivering a cross into the box which was connected by Luvumbu to open the scoring and send fans inside the stadium into frenzy. Police FC could have found an equalizer just three minutes later but striker Didier Mugisha blasted his shot wide from inside the box after Muhadjiri Hakizimana set him up from the free kick. The final five minutes of the first half saw Rayon Sports dominating possession as they ended the first half with a 1-0 lead. The home side started the second half from where they left off. A superb diagonal pass from Leandre Onana found Joackim Ojera in the box as the forward was constantly torn in the flesh of the Police FC defenders. Ojera was pushed down by Police FC skipper Eric Rutanga and the referee whistled for a penalty. Onana stepped up and sent goalkeeper Kwizera Janvier the wrong way for the second goal in the 46th minute. Police FC pulled a goal back in the 65th minute through Muhadjiri Hakizimana. The forward collected a pass from Didier Mugisha and made mincemeat of Samuel Ndizeye and Abdul Rwatubyaye as he dummied them before hitting a shot to the far right corner of the post to make it 2-1. Rayon responded with fire just a minute later as Onana beat his marker, cut inside, before hitting a ferocious strike to the net to make it 3-1. The Blues made a couple of changes as they brought on Felix Ndekwe and Hadji Iraguha respectively for Onana and Luvumbu who appeared to have had a neck injury. Police FC looked lively upfront as Muhadjiri Hakizimana proved to be a tough customer for Isaac Mitima and Rwatubyaye whenever he had the ball on his feet. Janvier Kwizera had to save Police FC in the 80th minute. His quick thinking enabled him to save a ball that Musa Esenu was going to pounce on. Police FC defense had a breather after Joackim Ojera was substituted. Mashami pushed more men in attack as they had less defensive duties. Substitute Bosco Kayitaba netted the second goal for Police FC in the 91st minute from a sweet build up as he hit a long range shot to the blind side of goalkeeper Bonheur Hategikimana. But it was too late for Mashami and his men to turn the scores right to their way as the game ended with Rayon winning 3-2, qualifying to the semifinals on a 6-4 aggregate victory. Rayon will now play Mukura in the semifinals.