JOHANNESBURG - It was always going to be a rocky road to negotiate. Not only for the player, Ruan Ackermann, but for his dad, Johan, too. How would the coach justify picking his 20-year-old son, who’d been out of school for one year, in his Super Rugby squad?
He didn’t have to, he said at the beginning of last season. Ackermann senior knew what junior was about and what he could bring to the Lions squad. But, ultimately, there was only one way Ruan could keep the critics and naysayers at bay: by producing the goods on the field.
Johan took what many would consider a gamble with his son - he knew it, too - but by the end of Super Rugby, when the Lions played in the final, against the Hurricanes in Wellington, New Zealand, and by the end of the year, when the Lions bowed out of the Currie Cup, no one questioned whether Ruan (pictured) was good enough. He proved himself worthy of his place in the team, time and time again; Ackermann senior had got it right.
“It was quite a stressful time for me and my dad,” admitted Ruan this week, when quizzed about his selection to the Lions Super Rugby squad at the beginning of last year.
“We sat down and spoke about the situation we found ourselves in. My dad said to me he was going to pick me and asked me just to play my normal game, to enjoy myself on the field. And, that’s what I did.
“I think the fact we toured (to Japan and New Zealand) first up helped take the spotlight off me, and him, a bit. I heard from some guys that he found it tough picking me, but he was backed by the other coaches (Swys de Bruin) and JP (Ferreira).”
There was talk in some circles that Ruan had been favoured ahead of other loose-forwards simply because he was the coach’s son, but he said nothing could be further from the truth.
“Some people might have thought along those lines, but I can tell you now I probably had to, and still do, work twice as hard to get into the team and to stay there. Just think about it it’s my dad doing the coaching and the selecting and it would be easy for him to overlook me.
“You always want to impress your parents and in rugby, in this case, it’s no different. It’s like that in training and on the field of play. I’ve always wanted to do more because of him, because of where he’s been, and because of what he’s achieved. I’ve got a lot to live up to. The only area where I’ve benefited because of him is that I’ve learned a lot from him over the years.”
As the season went on last year and Ruan felt more and more comfortable in the environment - and in senior rugby - his form just got better and better. And it mattered little whether his dad was picking him at eighthman, seven flank or at lock.
“I got some confidence after scoring a few tries early on in Super Rugby, stealing some lineout ball and when I got more game-time,” said Ruan. “In the end it was a good year for me and I was really privileged to run out for the Barbarians against the Springboks and Fiji in November. It also helped that I was injury-free.”
Ackermann junior was a star schoolboy player, turning out for the first team for three years, between 2012 and 2014, for Hoerskool Garsfontein in Pretoria. He, however, never imagined, getting into Super Rugby so soon.
“There was a lot of disappointment in my matric year when some injuries hit me hard. But the Lions obviously saw something in me and contracted me (while still at school) but when you consider all the great loose-forwards they have, not in my wildest dreams did I think I’d play Super Rugby last year. But then, at the Lions, if you work hard and are deserving, and you’re good enough, you’ll get a chance you just need to make the most of the opportunity.”
Now, as the kick-off to the 2017 season nears, Ruan will again be in the spotlight. More so as he’s poised to get a starting role in the No 7 jersey this year, in place of the retired Warwick Tecklenburg.
“I’m excited about the year ahead. There’s a lot of expectation after what we did last year but that’s also a nice challenge. For me personally, there are different tests that await. I don’t have to prove myself to anyone, but I need to take a step up this year, improve my game and back up what I managed to do in 2016, especially as there’s now a chance to play regularly in my favourite position this season.”
The Lions continue with their Super Rugby preparations this weekend when they face an invitation side at Wits on Saturday afternoon (3pm). Their first match of the new Super Rugby season is on February 25 against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.