AFRICANEWS

Rwanda

Football on genocide soil

Rwanda 'B' are the new East and Central Cup Champions. The team played their hearts out and utilised every opportunity to beat Kenya's Harambee Stars 3-1.

The successful hosting of the regional East and Central Africa Senior Challenge Cup soccer tournament from July 24 to August 7, was for Rwanda much more than a sporting feat. For the tiny and impoverished Central Africa State, it was a major milestone in its recovery from the 1994 genocide, which claimed an estimated 2 million lives.

And it could not have come at a more opportune time. For the first time in the event's history, the world soccer body, Fifa, provided a financial boost that made it possible for the regional tourney to attract a full house after a long time.

Neighbours Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia, Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar all lined up for the bonanza that saw the hosts' 'B' team emerge the overall champions.

Rwanda had entered two sides; a privilege traditionally accorded the host nation and the defending champions.
Both Rwanda 'A' and 'B' sides lived up to the billing and it was only Kenya that posed a real threat to their determination to win the event. The Senior Challenge Cup is an annual event for the countries in the East and Central Africa region. It was launched in 1973 and previously involved the southern Africa nations of Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. The latter have since defected to COSAFA Cup tournament for the southern Africa states.

The latter Kenya had earlier pipped Rwanda 'B' 1-0 in the preliminaries to top their group then went ahead to eliminate the 'A' side 1-4 in a pulsating semi-final encounter that had to be decided on a penalty shootout.
But if the Kenyans thought that theirs with the hosts was finally over, they were in for a big shock. Rwanda 'B' fought all the way to the final and were not going to lose to the Kenyans again.

To make it past the preliminaries, the hosts' second string team had to rely on lady luck. After they had tied with Eritrea for the second slot, a coin had to be tossed to decide the qualifier. And as if the coin had been intimidated by the all-Rwanda aura, it rolled in their favour.

Playing before a packed crowd at the modest Amahoro Stadium in the capital city Kigali on August 7, the Rwandese took just 11 minutes to take the lead. Tijan Rungarunga put them ahead with a beautiful header from a free kick from the left flank.
The goal sent thousands of home spectators, who included the country's vice-president Paul Kagame into a frenzy as they shouted themselves hoarse for more goals.

Undeterred, the Kenyans, who in the early 1980s dominated the competition, notched an equaliser in the 32nd minute through Charles Kumuyu following a cross from Maurice Sunguti.

When Harambee Stars, as the Kenyans are popularly known, thought that they had finally taken control of the game, the Rwandese grabbed the lead again in the 40th minute. The marksman this time round was Shean Girungu, who rattled the Stars' custodian Francis Onyiso with a shot that made the hero of the semi-final turn villain.

Onyiso, a soldier by profession, had won the admiration of many a compatriot and soccer enthusiasts by not conceding a single goal in the preliminaries and spectacularly saving two penalty shots in the semi-final.

Rwanda 'B' maintained the lead to the breather and came back an even more inspired side. They dominated the second half and wrapped it up with yet another goal. The Kenyans must, however, be praised for restricting the scoreline despite the sustained pressure and the soggy stadium conditions. The losers later blamed their fall on the lack of appropriate playing boots for the wet conditions. They reckoned that unlike the Rwandese, their boots had no metal studs for a firm grip on the slippery ground.

In whatever way the Rwandese may have fallen short of their many guests' expectations, theirs was a milestone against a backdrop of poverty and a delicate tribal union.
The competition gave them a chance to forget their ethnic differences and think as a nation- not Tsutsis or Hutus. The victory was the much-needed recipe to cement the re-emerging nationalism. It will definitely be remembered for a long time to come and will remain a permanent reminder to the different ethnic groups of what they can achieve as a nation.

Tribal animosity, dating back to the colonial days, exploded into a fully blown genocide in 1994 an nearly tore the central Africa nation asunder. It all started following the demise of the country's long time dictator Juvenal Habyarimana in a plane crash. Most of those who lost their lives the were minority Tutsi, who had maintained a stranglehold on the countries political and military scene.

Since then the reconciliation process has been a delicate issue that has required the intervention of no less than the entire international community through the United Nations Organisation.
The crash also claimed the life Burundi's former military dictator, Jean Baptiste Bagaza, a Tutsi extremist. Here too, age-old tribal animosity was re-ignited and remains a touchy issue to date.

For the Kenyans, the it yet another frustrating hunting for a title they last won in 1982 in Uganda. The went to Kigali the top-ranked team among the competing nations according to the latest figure from Fifa. Perhaps it would have been less painful had the defeat been handed them by a team they had not beaten earlier, and an 'A' side for that matter.

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