The Nedbank Cup is back this coming weekend with the semifinal fixtures to be played on Sunday when Mamelodi Sundowns host Kaizer Chiefs and defending champions Orlando Pirates welcome Marumo Gallants.
The teams will be looking to book a place in the scheduled May 10 final, with Pirates chasing a third victory in a row in the competition having already achieved a hat-trick of MTN8 titles in the last three years.
There have been more than three goals scored per game in this year’s Nedbank Cup and while it is unlikely we are headed for a record tally, that is a healthy number based on previous seasons.
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The 82 goals scored in 27 matches have come at 3.04 goals per game, which is slightly higher than last year’s average of 2.97.
But it is a long way off the most goals scored in the Nedbank Cup season. You would think that would be the 2012 campaign when Mamelodi Sundowns beat Powerlines FC 24-0 to give a significant boost to the total. But that year’s 96 goals is only joint fifth on the all-time list.
There were 97 goals scored in 31 games in the 2013 season (3.13 goals per game), and in 2010 there were 98 goals at an average of 3.16 per game.
In 2014 there were exactly 100 goals scored, the second highest of any Nedbank Cup season. That is an average of 3.23 per game.
The tally was boosted by an 8-3 win for African Warriors over Mainstay United, an 8-0 victory for Bloemfontein Celtic at University of Stellenbosch and an epic 4-3 success for Moroka Swallows over Mbombela United.
But the season with the most goals in Nedbank Cup history was 2011, when there were 105 scored (3.39 per game).
There were 56 goals netted in the Last 32 (3.50 goals per game), including a 7-0 win for Carara Kicks over Cullinan FC. AmaZulu defeated Real Madrid 5-0.
A further 26 goals were scored in the eight Last 16 matches (3.25 per game), which included a 4-3 win for Mpumalanga Black Aces over Witbank Spurs.
A total of 14 goals were scored in the quarterfinals (3.50 per game), five in the semifinals (2.50 per game) and four in the final, where Orlando Pirates defeated second-tier Black Leopards 3-1 at the Mbombela Stadium.
It was not a season of massive wins, but games were generally tight and full of goals.
If you take the five years from 2010 to 2014, they remarkably all feature in the top five of goals scored in Nedbank Cup seasons.
The lowest number of goals scored was in 2021, when there were 80 (2.59 per game), and the second lowest was the following year with 81.
Those numbers still stack up favourably compared to the South African league, which in recent seasons has hovered around the 2.00 goals per game, or just below.
The 2023 season bounced back with 96 goals and there were 92 in 2024.
GOALS SCORED IN A NEDBANK CUP SEASON
2008 - 94
2009 - 86
2010 - 98
2011 - 105
2012 - 96
2013 - 97
2014 - 100
2015 - 91
2016 - 94
2017 - 91
2018 - 83
2019 - 81
2020 - 90
2021 - 80
2022 - 81
2023 - 96
2024 - 92
2025 – 82*
*After 27 matches. Three games remaining.