Airlink Pumas duo departs to join URC franchise
Braude and Swart have been regular fixtures in the Airlink Pumas set-up since they joined the Lowveld’s men in pink and will be missed.
Two players from the Airlink Pumas have departed the Lowveld and traded in their pink jerseys for the black ones of the Hollywoodbets Sharks.
Scrum half Ross Braude and hooker Eduan Swart are trading the Lowveld for the coastline, bringing their journeys with the Pumas to an end after the 2025 Carling Currie Cup. They have both joined the Sharks ahead of the upcoming Vodacom United Rugby Championship (URC).
Both Braude and Swart have been pivotal parts of the Pumas’ set-up during their time in the Lowveld.
A Hoërskool Oos-Moot alumnus, Swart – who turns 25 in October – the Blue Bulls and joined the Pumas in the 2020/21 Currie Cup season and made his debut against the Lions on January 2, 2021. Since joining the Pumas, he has played 57 games in the front row, and in 2025 alone, has crossed the try line 12 times, racking up 60 points for the men in pink.
He will be missed by the Pumas but brings valuable URC experience to the Sharks, having had a brief stint with the Scarlets during which he scored a try.
Braude is a product of Grey College and will be 26 in January. He joined the Pumas in 2023 from the USA-based Major League Rugby franchise, the Toronto Arrows, making his debut against the Griquas in the Airlink Cup on November 4, 2023.
Braude has played 40 matches at scrum half for the Pumas and has a haul of 70 points this year alone, including six tries in the Currie Cup. He has been a big part of the Pumas’ backline since joining in 2023 and was named the Pumas’ 2024 SA Cup Player of the Year.
The Sharks will also benefit from Braude’s international experience, as he has represented Canada on the world stage. He also won titles with the Blue Bulls’ U19 and U21 teams before moving to Canada and will have a lot to offer the coastal team.
Three more players are temporarily departing the Pumas for the URC: Clinton Swart, Etienne Janneke and JJ Scheepers are going out on loan.
Swart, who has played 35 matches for the Pumas since joining from Japanese outfit Shizuoka Blue Revs in 2024, scored 112 points for the Pumas in 2025 and will be playing in the URC for the DHL Stormers. Janneke is the most experienced of the outgoing Pumas players as he has played 61 matches in pink since joining from the University of Pretoria in 2021, and will be playing in the URC for the Vodacom Bulls. Scheepers joined the Pumas’ ranks this year from the Blue Bulls and will play for the Sharks.
It’s not only players that are heading out temporarily, as Pumas’ head coach, Jimmy Stonehouse, has been approached to act in a consultant coaching role for the Sharks.
