Forward Abeddy Biramahire scored a 73rd minute winner as Rayon Sports came from behind to defeat AS Kigali 2-1 at Kigali Pele Stadium on Saturday evening in a fiercely contested Rwanda Premier League encounter.
The win saw the Blues move four points clear at the top after APR FC slipped on Saturday in a goalless draw with Gasogi United.
Rayon Sports started brightly as Abeddy Biramahire’s diving header from Hadji Iraguha’s cross missed the target narrowly in the fourth minute.
Robertinho’s men started to dominate the game as they gave AS Kigali no chance to settle. They controlled the midfield with the visitors chasing the game.
But it was the Citizens who looked more ambitious in front of goal.
A defensive mishap saw Emmanuel Okwi stealing the ball from Omar Gning but the Senegalese centre back recovered to clear the ball to corner kick in the 13th minute.
Okwi nearly gave AS Kigali the lead in the 15th minute as he engineered space for himself and hit a stinging drive from 30 yards. Khadime Ndiaye punched the ball but there was no one to connect the rebound as Hakim Bugingo cleared the danger.
Rayon turned defense to attack but Abdul Rahman Rukundo fumbled infront of goal in the 19th minute as goalkeeper Pascal Niyonkuru saved the danger.
Jean-Bosco Akayezu was booked in the 21st minute as he heckled down Omborenga Fitina who had gone on an overlapping run down the right flank.
AS Kigali shot ahead in the 28th minute through a fantastic lob from Okwi. The Uganda international received a long ball from the midfield and easily feigned movement for Hakim Bugingo to pass. He then cheekily lobbed the ball to the roof of the net with Ndiaye well beaten to make it 1-0.
Even after the goal, AS Kigali started moving more men forward. They could have been 2-0 up in the 38th minute but there was no one to connect Janvier Benedata's cross as Rayon cleared their lines.
AS Kigali won all the 50-50 balls and closed all spaces making it very difficult for Rayon Sports to operate.
The first half ended with AS Kigali leading 1-0 and arguably looking the better side.
Rayon Sports coach Robertinho brought on Aziz Bassane for Rahman Rukundo before the second half stared as he sought to strengthen his attack.
Bassane’s impact was felt by Marc Nkubana who was shown a yellow card on the 49th minute after he brought him down.
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Biramahire thought he had restored parity for Rayon Sports in the 51st minute but the linesman had raised his flag before he shot into the net and the goal was ruled out for offside.
AS Kigali brought on Jospin Nshimirimana for Didier Ndayishimiye in the 53rd minute to beef up their attack. They also made further chances by pulling out Emmanuel Okwi who had suffered a knock for Tharcisse Nshimiyimana while Aime Ntirushwa also replaced skipper Haruna Niyonzima.
Rayon came into the game strongly as they played the ball in the half of AS Kigali.
The league leaders had a corner and Roger Kanamugire headed the ball into the net to make it 1-1 in the 65th minute. There was a temporal hold up as AS Kigali players ran to linesman Valery Maniragaba to raise their claim. They believed the corner shouldn&039;t have stood as there was a foul on Akayezu prior to that.
AS Kigali looked to have lost their momentum as Rayon Sports dictated the pace of the game. Biramahire beat the offside trap as he slotted a through ball past Niyonkuru in the 73rd minute to make it 2-1 for Rayon Sports.
Coach Mbarushimana decided to go all out in the final 10 minutes of the game as he pulled out left-back Akayezu for striker Prince Rudasingwa in the 80th minute.
The game became more physical with flying tackles all over as tempers flared up from both sides.
AS Kigali pushed for the equalizer but Rayon held on to record a hard fought win.
They now sit top of the league standings with 46 points with APR trailing in 2nd place with 42 points.