Azam FC have advanced to the second round of qualifying for the Caf Confederation Cup after defeating Fasil Kenema 3-1 on Saturday.
A brace from Richard Djodi gave the Tanzanian outfit a two-goal advantage within half an hour, before Mujib Kassim halved the deficit.
However, Obrey Chirwa ensured progression for the home side with a late strike, making it 3-2 in aggregate.
Azam came into the match aware of the daunting task of overturning the 1-0 defeat suffered in Ethiopia a fortnight ago. Anything less than a two-goal victory could have eliminated them from the competition.
The Etienne Ndairagije-led side started the game on a high, limiting the movements of their opponents. They created several chances but good defending and astute goalkeeping ensured the scores remained 0-0 after the opening exchanges.
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However, Azam was not going to be denied for long - in the 23rd minute, Djodi found space in the final third and took his chance well to send the home fans into a frenzy.
The attacker was not done - seven minutes later, he was at the end of it again to double the advantage for his team.
A concentration lapse allowed Kenema to get a valuable away goal in the 37th minute through Kassim. It was a goal which could have denied Azam the chance to progress to the next round.
Azam was not in a mood to throw away that chance and they showed it through a flood of attacks. They were finally rewarded in the 59th minute through Chirwa, whose precise finish gave the fans something to cheer about.
Azam will now play the winner between Triangle of Zimbabwe and Rukinzo of Burundi in the next round.
