Springboks answer Bulls SOS as FOUR coaches join Johan Ackermann’s set-up
Bulls head honcho Johan Ackermann and Springboks coach Felix Jones, who will be helping out at the franchise.
The Springboks have agreed to help the Bulls by allowing four of their coaches to take short-term roles at the United Rugby Championship outfit.
It has been an underwhelming season for the South African giants, who have won just three of their URC games in the 2025/26 campaign so far.
They have also gone down to successive defeats in the Investec Champions Cup, leaving them on the brink of exiting that competition.
The four Springboks coaches
As a result, the Pretoria-based side have enlisted the help of several Springboks coaches, headlined by Felix Jones and Duane Vermeulen.
It was reported that Jones and Vermeulen would be helping out at the Bulls and that has now been confirmed by SA Rugby, but they have been joined by two more from the national set-up.
Defence specialist Jerry Flannery and S&C guru Andy Edwards will also provide support to a team that recently axed assistant coaches Chris Rossouw and Andries Bekker.
“We maintain regular engagement with our franchises, and when they request input in specific areas, we assist within the normal scope of our roles,” Boks head coach Rassie Erasmus.
“We understand the importance of a strong, collaborative relationship between our provincial teams and the Springboks, as it ultimately benefits South African rugby as a whole.”
An SA Rugby statement outlined the details of the agreement, where the Boks coaches will only engage on a “limited basis” and that it is only “short-term” and will not “constitute any formal appointment with the franchise”.
Springboks coaches recruited to ease Bulls crisis as Johan Ackermann does damage control
Jake White replaced by Johan Ackermann
The Bulls finished the 2024/25 regular season in second place and then finished beaten finalists to Leinster, but it was not enough to save Jake White’s job.
They were criticised for their style of play and were duly hammered in 32-7 by the Irish province in the showpiece event in Dublin.
White therefore departed and was replaced by former Lions head honcho Johan Ackermann, but his arrival has not changed matters.
The Pretoria outfit have already lost as many games as they did in the whole of the previous URC campaign, leaving them down in 10th position in the table.
Ackermann already finds himself under pressure but he remains in the job with the Bulls instead looking for help from the Boks in order to boost their ailing season.
“Our approach has always been to work collaboratively with our franchises where possible. We want to see all our teams perform to the best of their ability, and we will continue to support them when they reach out for assistance,” SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer said.
READ MORE: Springboks star slams World Rugby as depowering the scrum ‘a slap in the face’