Vodacom Bulls coach Johan Ackermann will experience a familiar setting from a very different vantage point in Saturday’s Jukskei derby at Ellis Park.
The Vodacom URC clash carries added edge for Ackermann’s Bulls, who are looking to avenge a 43-33 defeat to the Lions at Loftus Versfeld last November, but for the coach himself the occasion is layered with history and emotion.
Ackermann returns to Ellis Park for the first time since leaving the Lions in 2017, having since coached in England and Japan. He returned to South African rugby ahead of the current season following Jake White’s departure from the Bulls.
“You know, in our rugby history these two unions split from each other and it’s always been a case of who the bigger brother is,” Ackermann said in a URC media statement. “Then you had players from the Bulls going over to the Lions in those days like Uli Schmidt, Jannie Breedt, Hannes Strydom and myself.
“Then when I coached there I brought a bunch of Bulls players like Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Franco Mostert and others from the Bulls. They always had a point to prove against their old team, and I think that’s why the derby grew like it has. We’re basically neighbours. Many of the Lions players live in Pretoria. So that’s what makes this fixture so special.”
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Saturday will also mark Ackermann’s first return to Ellis Park as an opposition coach since his Lions tenure ended, something he admits will feel unusual.
“As a player you play for the Bulls and then later for the Lions and that was an experience as you suddenly move to the other camp. Then as a coach at the Lions it was always a big challenge to coach against the Bulls at Ellis Park or at Loftus Versfeld.
“And now, after a long time out of South Africa, I’m back and coaching the Bulls. A couple of months ago it was so strange to come up against the Lions at Loftus because that was my last South African team I coached.”
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Familiar faces remain on the Highveld, adding to the sense of déjà vu.
“A player like Julian Redelinghuys, who I coached at the Lions, is now a coach himself. And Ivan van Rooyen was my head of strength and conditioning when I was head coach at the Lions, and now he’s the head coach.
“Their manager is still the same, their kit man is still the same, the doctor is the same. So there are a few people who brought back some good memories.
“Obviously the result wasn’t what I wanted in my first derby against my old team. This will now be the first time I’ll be back at Ellis Park since I coached there, so it will be quite an experience to be on the other side.”
Photo: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
