The 'minor' change which turned the Bulls' season around
SPOTLIGHT: A new broom ensures a clean sweep, and the Bulls seemed to have found their perfect match in Johan Ackermann.
During the Jake White regime, the Bulls got the results, winning the Currie Cup twice, bagging a Super Rugby Unlocked title and making the Rainbow Cup and URC Finals.
But despite the on-field success, there were reported unhappiness brewing in the camp, which ultimately led to White being shown the door by his employers.
In comes Ackermann under difficult circumstances, and after a losing run which led to a change in assistant personnel, the Bulls are on the brink of breaking their URC Final duck after looking dead and buried midway through the season.
The reason for the turnaround? A strong team culture, according to Ackermann.
The Bulls mentor said the team culture is the bigger picture for building a foundation for success.
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“Every team, when the season starts, want to reach the Final,” Ackermann said.
“Personally, taking into account and given the history of Loftus Versfeld and the passionate Bulls supporters, there would’ve been a lot of questions if we didn’t reach the Final, especially if we didn’t make it to the play-offs.
“I knew that pressure is on, but the most important thing for me was to start building a culture and philosophy of how I see the game.
“Rugby is great, and we’re all very passionate about it, but there is a bigger picture outside of that, and that is your team culture.”
Ackermann admitted that there was doubt after going through a rough patch where results didn’t go their way, and the public were starting to question the Bulls’ ability as a team.
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“It was mentally tough when I thought about how we were going to get out of the hole we were in, although you kept on believing.
“I can just credit the people around me who always showed up with a positive attitude and the players showing good energy at training.
“At one stage [of the season] we didn’t think anything but getting into the play-offs – at one stage that was the main target.
“As the season progressed, the talks of hosting a quarterfinal started to materialise, and we took it from there.
“I’ve always said, if we can turn it around and we can get into the play-offs I believe this team can beat anyone.
“But I won’t lie – there were times I doubted if we could turn things around.”
The Bulls and Leinster met in the knockout stages three times (two semifinals and a Final) with Leinster coming out on top in the big dance last season, whilst the Bulls were successful in the two semifinals.
One can be assured of a Test match-like game with several Ireland and South African Test players going head to head on June 19.
Leinster and the Bulls are the leading teams on either side of the URC’s Ireland v South Africa rivalry: Leinster have the best Irish record against South African teams, while the Bulls have the best South African record against Irish opposition.
Leinster’s record against South African teams reads 15 wins out of 26 games and a 57.7 percent winning percentage. They are the only Irish side above 55 percent.
The Bulls’ record against Irish teams reads 15 wins out of 24 games for a 62.5 percent return.
They are the only South African side above 50 percent against Irish opposition.
The 2026 Grand Final brings together the URC era’s two strongest away performers.
Leinster has the league’s best away win rate, and the Bulls are the only other team above 50 percent.
Leinster’s home win percentage is 88.5 percent, which is second best in the URC era to Glasgow Warriors (91.7 percent).
