It was a weekend of shocking results as the likes of Marines FC and Musanze won away from home while Gasogi United did the job for Kiyovu after making APR drop points in Sunday’s barren draw at Bugesera Stadium to see the title race take a new twist. In all, 14 goals were recorded in the fixtures with the APR vs Gasogi game being the only fixture which failed to produce a goal. Times Sport brings to you five things that shaped the Rwanda Premier League week 26 matches. Marines’ resilience paying off Few weeks ago, Marines FC were firmly rooted in the relegation zone but, with their recent on-pitch hard work, they are now out of the danger zone with two straight wins. They outplayed and walloped Musanze 4-1 before defying all odds to go to Huye and beat Mukura Victory 1-0 at home. Marines FC are now brimming with confidence and they can sail through as they have Rutsiro to face among their last five remaining fixtures. Kiyovu holding their nerves During the 2021/22 season, Kiyovu lost the title to APR by just a single point. The beginning of this current season saw them losing Ugandan forward Emmanuel Okwi who moved to Iraq, Eric Ngendahimana and coach Francis Haringingo who both left for Rayon Sports whereas Abedi Bigirimana, who was the best player in the league last season, has also failed to find his feet. Under normal circumstances, Kiyovu should have been a depleted side but they are still going stronger. They have been excellent this season and their win over AS Kigali has seen them tying APR at the top with 53 points each though the army club is leading with goal difference. APR may still have an upper hand on the title but Kiyovu are not ready to give them an easy ride to the title. They are at this stage title favorite as well. The Neffati, Nsoro touchline row Tempers flared up at the Bugesera Stadium last Saturday as APR FC were held to a goalless draw with Gasogi. The APR bench thought referee Ruzindana Nsoro was not fair as he whistled to stop the game when there was no infringement coupled with Kevin Ishimwe’s deliberate time wasting inside the last ten minutes of the match. Head coach Ben Moussa and his assistant Eddine Neffati were embroiled in a touchline row with Nsoro as they protested against his refereeing calls. Things escalated that moment when Eddine Neffati was given a red card for removing his shirt and hitting it on the ground out of fury. It was evidently clear that the pair have lost confidence in the referee, one of Rwanda’s top match officials, as they claim that it was not the first time he officiated unfairly against them to the point that they said that they included him among people who don’t want APR to win the title. Rayon still stands a chance! The title race is not over yet for Rayon Sports. They gave a considerable chance of winning the trophy when they beat Bugesera 2-0 to close the gap at the top by four points. If the Blues win all their remaining games and see frontrunners APR and Kiyovu drop some points. Rayon are trailing both APR and Kiyovu by four points with four games to go. They have the easiest fixtures down the road, Espoir, Gorilla, Marines, and Sunrise being their next opponents, which should be an easy 12 points for them to grab. The numbers don’t favor them but Rayon is always a ‘never say die’ team which can pull a surprise against rivals in such an unpredictable league. Arthur Gitego, a man of big occasions The Rwanda national U23 striker has netted eight league goals so far this season and has been very instrumental to the revival of Marines FC’s relegation battle. He scored the solitary goal against Mukura on Sunday which has now lifted the Rubavu based club out of the relegation zone. If Gitego can continue his exploits in the final five games, Marines would surely survive the scare. From all indications, despite Marines’ patchy form, the talented forward has proven his mettle and has shown that he is ripe for a bigger club.
