Substitute Mamadou Sy fired home a 94th minute winner as APR FC showed resilience by defeating AS Kigali 2-1 in a highly competitive Rwanda Premier League encounter at Kigali Pele Stadium on Sunday, February 16.
The victory helped the military side move just three points behind league leaders Rayon Sports who beat Kiyovu 2-1 on Saturday on the same ground.
Both teams started the game brightly as they chose to possess the ball in midfield.
The first chance of the game fell to APR in the 10th minute after Jean Bosco Ruboneka was brought down in the AS Kigali half but the resultant kick was wasted by Denis Omedi who shot the ball wide.
APR coach Darko Novic started to push more men forward with defensive midfielder Seidu Dauda occasionally joining the attack as an extra man.
Djibril Ouatarra was brought down by Saleh Ishimwe close to the AS Kigali penalty box in the 20th minute but skipper Claude Niyomugabo sent the free kick over the cross bar.
READ: APR FC share spoils with Police FC in epic encounter
APR had the chance to break the deadlock in the 26th minute after goalkeeper Aime Cuzuzo failed to clear the ball from the box under pressure from Denis Omedi. The ball fell to the Ugandan winger but he shot feeble AS Kigali defenders rushed to clear the danger.
Ouattara found acres of space in the AS Kigali half and moved towards the penalty box but a superb tackle from Frank Onyeabor stripped him off the ball in the 35th minute
The Citizens, who were clearly under intense pressure at the time, cooled the tempo of the game by opting for short passes in order to draw APR forward and hit them on the counter.
It worked perfectly for the visitors at some point in the 42nd minute as Emmanuel Okwi got behind the APR defense but his first-post strike was saved by Pavelh Ndzila.
The first half ended with the pair tied to a goalless draw.
The second half started with the same momentum from the first half. Each of the teams decided to unsettle the other by deploying more men behind the ball.
The first chance of the second half fell to Onyeabor in the 50th minute. He was close to opening the scoring but his header from a Haruna Niyonzima corner was saved by Ndzila.
Novic introduced Mamadou Sy and Gilbert Mugisha for Lamine Bah and Hakim Kiwanuaka respectively in the 57th minute in an effort to reinforce his attack.
AS Kigali were looking lively as they created some good chances but the finishing phase remained a problem. Coach Shabani Mbarushimana brought on Iyabivuze Osee and Didier Ndayishimiye for Okwi and Niyonzima respectively in the 65th minute as he was also pushing to break the deadlock.
But it was APR who shot ahead through Djibril Ouatarra who soared high above his marker to flick a ball from the right past Cuzuzo for the opener in the 68th minute.
Novic brought on Ismail Pitchou Nshimirimana for goal scorer Ouatarra in the 72nd minute as APR started playing only Sy in attack.
Against the run of play, a swift counter attack saw Janvier Benedata finding substitute Iyabivuze with a superb ball. The striker&039;s shot took a wicked deflection of Yunusu Nshimiyimana as the ball wrong-footed Ndzila for the equalizer in the 79th minute.
As the two teams entered the final 10 minutes of the game, Novic brought on Olivier Dushimimana for Omedi as he chased the match winner but that didn’t stop AS Kigali piling pressure on APR.
Iyabivuze missed a free header in the 90th minute as he also squandered a glorious chance in the 93rd minute.
And while the visitors were wasting glorious chances, it took Sy just one chance to turn the game around when he popped up with a fantastic effort in the 94th minute to earn the 3 maximum points for APR FC.
With the win, APR have now trail arch rivals Rayon Sports by three points. The Blues lead the pack with 40 points.
Elsewhere, Police FC thrashed Marines FC 4-0 in an earlier lunch break kick off at Kigali Pele Stadium. Chukwuma Odili scored a brace with Didier Mugisha and Henry Msanga also having their name on the scoresheet for Vincent Mashami’s side who stay in fifth place with 27 points.