Rwanda: Niyigena Awarded Player of the Tournament in the Cecafa Kagame Cup

Clement Niyigena, defender for APR FC, was awarded the best player of the CECAFA Dar Port Kagame Cup 2024, which came to a finish on Sunday, July 21, in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

The Rwandan international had a tremendous season, earning him the individual award even though his team lost shockingly to Zambian team Red Arrows in the championship. After a scoreless tie in regulation and extra time, APR was defeated 10–9 in penalty shootouts.

“I am happy that I won the Best Player award, and this will motivate me to keep working hard,” Niyigena said. “We are disappointed that we did not win the trophy.”

Pavelh Nzila, the goalkeeper, was named the tournament’s Best Goalkeeper after giving up just one goal in five games.
Mohamed Abdelrahman Yousif, a striker with Al Hilal, won the title of Top Scorer after scoring five goals. Additionally, the Fair-Play trophy was given to Tanzania’s Coastal Union FC.

There were 22 games in the tournament, and 43 goals were scored in all. APR FC (Rwanda), Red Arrows FC (Zambia), El Merriekh Bentiu (South Sudan), Al Hilal and Hay Al Wadi (Sudan), Dekehada FC (Somalia), ASA Djibouti Telecom (Djibouti), SC Villa (Uganda), Singida Black Stars FC and Coastal Union FC (Tanzania), Gor Mahia (Kenya), and JKU SC (Zanzibar) were among the participating teams.

In addition to the trophy, Red Arrows received a financial prize of $30,000, while APR, the finalists, received $20,000. After a 1-1 draw in regulation time, Al Hilal Omdurman defeated Hay Wadi 3-2 on penalties to take third place. The formidable Sudanese winner received $10,000.