EP Elephants locked and loaded for SA Cup opener against Falcons

A fired-up EP Elephants side are locked and loaded and ready to rumble in their opening SA Cup clash against the Falcons in Gqeberha on Friday, coach Allister Coetzee says.

If EP wants to take the first step towards erasing their unwanted image of being SA rugby’s sleeping giants, victory over their Falcons at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is essential (kickoff 5pm).

The formidable Kempton Park side, however, will not be pushovers, and EP know they cannot afford to stumble at the first hurdle.

I’m sure there is a bit of nervousness, but great excitement among the group ahead of our opening game. It was tough to select the 23 for this game, which shows the competition in the squad is healthy
— Allister Coetzee, head coach of EP Elephants

“I’m sure there is a bit of nervousness, but great excitement among the group ahead of our opening game,” Coetzee said.

“It was tough to select the 23 for this game, which shows the competition in the squad is healthy.

“The opening game will give us as coaches a good picture of where we are with our development as a group.

EP Elephants coach Allister Coetzee (Gallo)

“The process is to obviously qualify for the Currie Cup in 2027 in my third year at the helm, but there is a lot of desire and intent shown by the group at present, who are hungry for success.

“A lot of sacrifice has gone into building the squad of 2026.

“We will have two experienced co-captains in Mzwanele Zito and Damon Royle.”

A new-look Elephants side will be up against all SA’s non-franchise teams — including the Cheetahs, Pumas, Griquas, and a revamped, ambitious Boland Cavaliers outfit — in the SA Cup.

EP, who finished seventh in the 2025 edition of the tournament, must finish among the top four clubs in the 10-team SA Cup to earn promotion.

In 2025 the Falcons narrowly missed out on elevation to the Premier Division when they ended fifth on the SA Cup log, only two points behind the Boland Cavaliers.

Though EP’s SA Cup preparations were dealt a blow when they were forced to cancel a key warm-up clash against the Cheetahs, Coetzee has assured fans his team will be ready for Friday’s showdown.

EP opted to withdraw from the Free State game after an injury crisis sidelined four loose-head props.

At one stage props Hlomla Sondani (rib), Cole Haggard (biceps tear), Siya Nzuzo (concussion), and Endinako Kuse (knee injury) were all on the injury list.

This resulted in EP being forced to play 45 minutes with uncontested scrums in their final warm-up against the SWD Eagles.

The good news for EP is that Sondani and Nzuzo are expected to be available to face the Falcons on Friday.

“The team is looking forward to playing after a tough and long pre-season,” Coetzee said.

“Our conditioning has improved remarkably over the off- and pre-season.

“Obviously we would have liked to play another warm-up game but missed out due to the injuries in the loosehead prop department.

“However, two of our looseheads have recovered fully and are ready to go.”

EP gave an indication of their attacking prowess when they trampled the Border Bulldogs 47-19 in a pre-season clash billed as the “Big Banger” derby showdown in Makhanda.

A rampant EP side outscored their neighbours by nine tries to three to get their season under way in winning style at Prospect Field.

EP’s try scorers against Border were Christian Potgieter (2), Rodney Damons (2), Troy Delport, Armand Grobler, Leon van der Merwe, Deon Plaatjies and Jayden Bantom.

Coetzee will be hoping his backs show similar attacking intent against the Falcons.

Opening SA Cup fixtures:

Friday: EP Elephants v Falcons, Cheetahs v Boland Cavaliers, SWD Eagles v Pumas. Saturday: Griffons v Border Bulldogs