Airlink Pumas pounce on SWD Eagles in SA Cup opener
The Pumas' win is their second-biggest ever in the SA Cup competition.
The Airlink Pumas kicked off their 2025 SA Cup season with a dominant win over the Phangela SWD Eagles, winning by 68 points at Mbombela Stadium.
The Pumas enjoyed a highly fruitful preseason campaign, winning all of their games, having taken on the Lions, Valke and Griffons in preparation for the 2025 season.
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This successful preseason would have undoubtedly spurred the Pumas on going into their first fixture of the SA Cup, which this year acts as a qualifier for the Carling Currie Cup, where the top four make the cut for the premier division.
As was the case in 2024, the Pumas would begin their SA Cup journey against the SWD Eagles, albeit on home soil this time. The men in pink enjoyed a sunset kick-off at 17:00 at Mbombela Stadium on March 7, with the Eagles eager to improve on last season’s defeat in George. No fewer than five debutants were in the Pumas’ matchday squad, two of whom were starters.
This eagerness showed in the opening stages of the encounter, as the men from the Garden Route landed the first blow in the second minute, stunning the couple thousand fans in the stadium to silence. The Eagles’ lead was short-lived though, as the Pumas bounced back through a try from inside centre Wian van Niekerk five minutes later.
After another five minutes debutant outside centre Sango Xamlashe opened his account for the Pumas as they took the lead. There was no looking back from there, as the Eagles were unable to come up with an answer to the Pumas’ dominance. The home side scored two more tries in the first half to hold a 26-7 lead at half-time.
The second half saw the floodgates open though, as the Pumas raked up as many points as possible. No fewer than seven converted tries were scored in the second period, that saw the Pumas run away with the game.
They finished off as 75-7 winners, the perfect way to begin the season. The Pumas are now top after the first round thanks to their points difference, and will face Eastern Province in Gqeberha this Saturday, March 15.
