That decider ended 0-0 at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, the same venue as Saturday’s 2026 final, which will see the two best teams in South Africa renew their rivalry with an 18h00 kick-off.
Bongani Zungu, Junior Mendieta and Teboho Mokoena missed the first three spot-kicks in the shoot-out for Sundowns as Pirates triumphed, part of a run that sees the Buccaneers chase an unprecedented fifth successive MTN8 title.
Including that fixture, which is a draw for the record books, the teams have met nine times since, with two wins each and five draws.
They met again in the MTN8 semi-finals in 2025 and, following two 1-1 draws, Pirates triumphed once more on penalties. Mokoena missed again in the shoot-out, alongside Marcelo Allende.
Sipho Chaine has the Bafana Bafana star’s number, it seems, from 12 yards.
The teams have been involved in four shoot-outs in the past and Pirates have won three of them. They also claimed victory in the 1993 BP Top Eight semi-final replay, so have a hat-trick in this competition.
But Sundowns triumphed in the 1998 Bob Save Super Bowl final replay to lift that trophy.
Given that three of the last four meetings between the sides have ended in draws, penalties could well come into the picture again.