The Stormers-Bulls rivalry has never needed extra spark, but this week the fuse has been lit by whispers of Springbok involvement, turning Saturday’s Vodacom URC north-south derby into a tactical arm-wrestle even before the first hit-up at Cape Town Stadium.
Stormers defence coach Norman Laker admitted to raised eyebrows in the Cape after SA Rugby confirmed that members of the Springbok coaching and performance team of Felix Jones, Jerry Flannery, Duane Vermeulen and Andy Edwards, had been deployed to assist a struggling Bulls outfit on a short-term basis.
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For Laker, the timing felt as awkward as a loose pass in your own 22.
“It was quite interesting for me to see that, in such a big week, they’re bringing the Springbok coaches in to help the Bulls,” Laker said.
“Normally, the national coaches don’t really help teams when there are derbies involved. That’s always been the case.”
The Stormers coach was careful not to blow the referee’s whistle on the move, but he did note it strayed from established rugby customs.
“In the past, guys like Felix Jones and Daan Human have assisted franchises when we were playing overseas opposition.
“Felix has helped us before, Daan has come in to help with scrummaging – but never ahead of a local derby,” he explained.
“Asked whether the Bulls stood to gain an unfair advantage, Laker sidestepped the tackle with measured diplomacy.
“I can’t say if it’s a fair or unfair advantage. I just find it interesting. That’s all I can really say.”
Despite the subplot, Laker insists the Stormers’ gaze remains fixed firmly on their own mirror, not the Bulls’ coaching box.
“It doesn’t matter who coaches the team this week. A north-south derby is a game where players don’t need motivation. They’ll come out guns blazing, backs against the wall, wanting to win.”
Veteran Springbok scrumhalf Cobus Reinach, preparing for his first Stormers-Bulls derby after eight years abroad in England and France, echoed that sentiment, predicting a collision rather than a chess match.
“You hear from the boys how big this fixture is,” Reinach said.
“It’s going to be physical, it’s going to be intense, and it’s about who fronts up on the day.”
Ackermann fires back: ‘Not derby-week plotting’
Across the divide, Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann moved swiftly to clear the fog, rejecting claims that Springbok assistant coaches were embedded in the Bulls’ camp during derby week.
“I never asked for that, and Rassie also said it wouldn’t be ideal,” Ackermann explained.
“The thought that they would be in camp this week is ridiculous, and I challenge any press photographer to get a picture of a Bok coach at Loftus this week – it was never our intention.”
Ackermann said frustration had built after speculation gathered momentum without a phone call to him.
“The story was spread without the facts, and nobody bothered to speak to me. The truth is simple: I assessed everything and wanted a fresh pair of eyes to look at our defensive structures and bounce ideas off.”
He clarified that his outreach was a request for perspective, not a playbook.
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“I said, you’ve always made your team of coaches available, and I’d love it if someone like [coach] Jerry Flanerry could come in and look at our defensive systems and share some ideas.
“I don’t expect the Bok coaches to put a plan together on how to win, that is my job as head coach. I have my own system; it was never my idea to secure plans.”
Any collaboration, Ackermann stressed, would be rotational, practical and not a permanent Bok bunker at Loftus.
“You can’t expect the Bok coaches, one of whom lives in Ireland, to be at Loftus every week. I’d be happy if they rotated, which is where the idea of involving Duane Vermeulen and Felix Jones came in.”
He closed with a firm line in the sand.
“I would never ask Rassie [Erasmus] for game plans, merely a careful eye on what we are doing. This is about alignment and perspective, not about outsourcing our coaching.”
With words exchanged and lines drawn, the derby now waits for the only verdict that matters … 80 minutes of bruising rugby, where no assistant coach can make a tackle, and no headline can score a try.
