Handball: Police a win away from retaining regional title

Saturday Police (Rwa) vs Ulinzi (KEN) 12:30pm Rwanda’s Police Handball Club (men) is just a win away from successfully defending their East and Central Africa Handball Federation (ECAHF) title at the ongoing 28th edition in Nairobi, Kenya. Despite a very disappointing campaign at this year’s African Handball Champions League that took place in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, last month, where they finished bottom, losing all their games, for the third time in as many attempts, Police have maintained their dominance at the regional scene. The annual event, that kicked off on November 19 until November 27, have attracted only four clubs in the men’s category that includes Police from Rwanda, and Ulinzi, Black mamba and Cereals all from Kenya. The tournament is being played in a round robin format and after two games, so far, the local law enforcers’ side still has a 100% record with just one game left on their schedule. In their opening game on Monday, Police defeated Cereals 39-32 goals, thanks to efforts from Captain Gilbert Mutuyimana, Norbet Duteteriwacu and Jean-Baptiste Habimana who each scored six games to guide their side to victory. In their second game, on Wednesday, Police again defeated Black Mamba 40-38 with Felix Mukunzi finding the back of the net 12 times, Zacharie Tuyishimire scored nine goals while Gilbert Mutuyimana scored six goals. Before taking on Ulinzi on Saturday in their final game, Police are on top of this group with four points, followed by Ulinzi that has two points, Black Mamba has also two points while Cereals are yet to get a point. “We are very optimistic that we shall defend our title, we have to win our next game at any cost and I am sure we shall do it because the mood is great in our camp,” said Police coach Alphonse Udahemuka in a phone interview with Times Sport. Police claimed their first title last year when they hosted the event after also finishing with 4 points and scored 16 goals, followed by Kenya’s Black Mamba (1 point) and a deficit of 7 goals while APR also finished with one point and a deficit of nine goals. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Handball: Police a win away from retaining regional title