The Airlink Pumas won two and lost one match at the second leg of the Tbilisi Cup played in Tbilisi, Georgia.

The Mpumalanga team took on the Iberians on September 24.

The Pumas led 40-14 at half-time and went on to win 64-21.

Despite the scoreline, the hot weather in Tbilisi made for tough going for the Pumas, who had four debutants on the pitch – Bradley Giddy, Christiaan van der Westhuizen, Barnard Nortjé and Jaco du Toit.

“We are glad we got the win,” said captain Willie Engelbrecht. “It was hot here today, so I am happy with the result. The new guys impressed me. They showed they want to work and focus on the guy next to them.”

Swanepoel equals try-scoring record

Tino Swanepoel scored a Pumas record-equalling five tries and was man of the match.

The record for the most tries in one match was five, set by Dirk Pretorius in 1978 and equalled by Ruwellyn Isbell in 2018.

Black Lion claim narrow win

On September 29, the Pumas faced Black Lion.

It was a closely contested match with either team in with a chance for victory until the final whistle.

The Pumas held a 12-7 lead at half-time, but Black Lion fought hard for a 21-19 victory.

Damian Baker and Henri van Heerden earned their first Pumas caps.

The Pumas did not gel as well in the second match as they did in the first.

“Our discipline was not good,” said coach Jimmy Stonehouse. “In the beginning our set pieces and scrums were not good. We gave a lot of penalties away. Then we had opportunities with the maul and did not execute. We should have been better.”

Pumas seal 68-20 win over Lusitanos

The Pumas defeated the Lusitanos 68-20 in their final match on October 4. The Mpumalanga team led 35-15 at half-time.