The Stade Huye in Butare played host to the 2023 Rwanda Peace Cup final on Saturday where Rayon Sports defeated fellow Kigali side APR FC by a 1-0 score in a clash between the two titans of Rwandan football.
Eric Ngendahimana swooped in to finish the rebound for the only goal of the match in the 40th minute after APR goalkeeper Pierre Ishimwe spilled an initial shot from Heritier Luvumba.
Rayon Sports, popularly known as Gikundiro by their supporters, claim their eleventh Rwandan domestic cup trophy with the victory.
After claiming a fourth consecutive domestic league title over Kiyovu by the goal differential tiebreaker, APR were eager to win their first domestic double since 2014 but encountered a stubborn Rayon Sports side on Saturday.
Ngendahimana appeared to head in an opening goal from a Willy Essomba Onana cross but was ruled offside by the assistant referee, a decision that was confirmed by replays.
However the one-time Rwanda national team player was not denied by the flag after he followed up to finish past Ishimwe after the keeper failed to adequately deal with Luvumba’s effort from outside the penalty area.
Video of Ngendahimana’s winning goal is below followed by the match highlights. Rayon Sports will represent Rwanda in next season’s CAF Confederation Cup while APR will take part in the Champions League.
