Cameroonian forward Leandre Willy Onana Essomba again proved to be the star of the day as his match winner completed Rayon Sports’ 3-2 thrilling comeback victory over Mukura on Wednesday at Huye Stadium to set one foot in the Peace Cup final. Mukura were ahead with a 2-0 lead at half time only for the visitors to lift up their game and score three goals in an entertaining second half to keep their Peace hopes alive. Mukura were in their element right from the start as their first attack resulted in a goal. Achraf Kamanzi shot the Huye-based club ahead with a fantastic finish in the first minute as Rayon began to chase the game. The home side looked very composed in all departments of the game as they allowed Rayon to do all the running whereas they tried to catch them on the break. Rayon’s attack made up of Leandre Onana, Joackim Ojera and Musa Esenu could not find the cutting edge as the likes of Cedric Kubwimana and Ngirimana Alexis remained solid at the back for Mukura. Home supporters stormed Huye Stadium with wild celebrations after Mukura doubled the lead in the 31st minute through Robert Mukhogotya who beautifully dispatched a penalty following an infringement inside the 18-yard box. Under pressure Francis Haringingo and his men were devastated by the second goal as they looked disjointed with nothing going well for them. The visitors decided to use the pace of Leandre Onana to great effect as the attacker drifted wide and tried to cut in with acceleration anytime he had the ball. The Mukura attackers spearheaded by Robert Mukhogotya and Elie Tatou were on the other hand lively upfront as they were able to drag Abdul Rwatubyaye and Samuel Ndizeye out of their shells in order to create space. The final five minutes of the first half saw Rayon creating some decent chances but they were not able to reduce the deficit as the referee blew his whistle for recess with the scores being 2-0 in favor of Mukura. Rayon continued from where they left off in the first half with incessant pressure on Mukura. They began to dominate possession with fluid midfield play from Raphael Osaluwe. Their efforts yielded dividends as Congolese playmaker Heritier Luvumbu reduced the deficit in the 49th minute with a fine effort to make it 2-1. The Blues took total control of the game afterwards as Mukura went to sleep. As opposed to their pathetic first half, Rayon dominated the second half and played with more urgency and were firmly in the driving seat. Ugandan attacker Joackim Ojera restored parity for Rayon in the 80th with a fabulous strike to make it 2-2. With the game heading to a draw, danger man Onana, who netted twice in the second leg quarter finals 3-2 victory over Police FC, produced the moment of magic with the third goal for Rayon in the 92nd minute. There were no further chances within the injury time as Rayon held on to their 3-2 away win in the first leg. The pair return to action in a second leg encounter slated for Saturday, May 13 at Kigali Stadium.
