'Saracens are going to be quite emotional... like a bear with a sore head'
Johan Ackermann emits a wry smile. It was early July when Gloucester learned they would play Leicester away and Saracens at home in the weekends leading into the opening round European game versus Toulouse.
Events, though, have meant this tall order has only become taller. There they were at Welford Road last Saturday, plunged into a messy arm-wrestle with an enemy scrapping for crumbs following their zero-from-two start to the Gallagher Premiership.
Gloucester’s confident two-from-two form buckled, missing a penalty at one end and then conceding down the other in the closing minutes to lose by three points. Cruel.
Now they are facing another backs-to-the-wall opposition. Taking on Saracens at any time is difficult enough. Just look at how Gloucester were annihilated in the opening 20 minutes of last May’s Premiership semi-final at Allianz Park.
But to be facing the Londoners just four days after the club that has dominated English club rugby in recent times learned they have been fined £5.3million and deducted 35 points, well that is just playing with fire.
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Emotional teams are trouble. “It’s almost like with Leicester, you play them after two losses you know you are going to get a side that is going to be bang on it, and I think it is the same thing with Saracens,” Ackermann told RugbyPass ahead of the intriguing Saturday afternoon showdown at Kingsholm.
“In that sense, it is unfortunate that were play Saracens now because they are going to be quite emotional and well-motivated. Saying that, we have to control our standard.
“We didn’t play well in the first three weeks consistently so for us, if we really want to compete in this competition or in any competition, we have to be able to play well on a weekly basis and it starts on Saturday against Sarries. Even though we know they are going to be quite like a bear with a sore head, we have to match that.”
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? Ben Morgan captains the side
??????? First start for Chris Harris?#GLOvSAR | #BringItOn pic.twitter.com/WnrvC25x0B
— Gloucester Rugby ? (@gloucesterrugby) November 8, 2019
The finer details of the punishment meted out to Saracens, sanctions that will be enforced if the Londoners are unsuccessful in their appeal, are something Ackermann isn’t inclined to dwell on. “It’s something that is between Saracens and the Premiership,” he shrugged. “I don’t want to really get involved there.
“It [the salary cap] is part of the competition and we can just rely that we abide by that and just get on with it. At the end of the day, on the field it is important that we play as good as we can and not worry about the other teams.”
Especially at home. Gloucester won nine of their eleven home Premiership games last term, losing out to just Harlequins and Sale, but they know from their Champions Cup pool mishap, where they were beaten twice in three matches, that they simply can’t turn up at Kingsholm expecting things to automatically happen just because they are at home.
Sarries are being dragged over the coals, but arguably the best academy system in England could be their saving grace
– writes @alexshawsport ??? #Saracenshttps://t.co/DkUVscIb05
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 6, 2019
“The reality is the players thought exactly that, that it would work out itself. I don’t want to use the injuries that we had in the front row as an excuse. We struggled a bit there but apart from that, I do believe that we must do the hard work by playing well at home.
“There is no expectation to play away. You can go out and play without that added pressure, but we have to learn to handle the pressure to perform at home. It is a great time for Gloucester, for the supporters, when they see these teams coming and we have to live up to that expectation.”
Gloucester looked the part in the league two weekends ago, slithering past Wasps to a bonus point win despite the rain, and it was their inability to keep trust in this approach that most disappointed Ackermann when ambushed at Leicester.
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But what do I know!! ????#rwc #rugbyworldcup #rugbymemes #englandrugby #premrugby #gloucester
“The disappointing thing is the opportunities we left out there. We could have easily got a lot more points but we didn’t play the style that we want to play. We moved away from our DNA of playing an attacking brand of rugby and that is the disappointing thing.
“We showed in difficult conditions against Wasps we can still score tries, and we moved away from that. We are not there yet. Hopefully, this will be a bit of a setback that will wake up the players and get their form going.”
Leicester was a particularly uncomfortable place to be for Ackermann, Tom Hardwick’s result-stealing penalty on 79 minutes followed by raucous full-time Tigers cheers. But it wasn’t as if he came away from the East Midlands city without any reason to smile.
There has been little sympathy for Saracens following Premiership Rugby Limited's salary cap findings https://t.co/BfINhTdTiy
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 5, 2019
Earlier that Saturday he had sat down in his hotel room to lap up South Africa’s World Cup final victory over England. For sure, it was quite a different setting to how he watched the Springboks clinch their first title 24 years previously, Ackermann being part of the crowd that tumultuous day in Johannesburg. But all the same, the TV made for sweet viewing.
“My wife and one of my sons were in South Africa when they won last Saturday and they said the whole place, it doesn’t matter where you go, where you walk, it’s flags, it’s Springboks jerseys, it’s a happy place and that is what the country needed.
“It is always going through tough times. There is always negativity with the state of our economy and with our crime rate and things, so the sport just brings people together, it brings hope. You look at Siya Kolisi and the message that he gave and how our youngsters, our next generation, can aspire. We can work together and we can be one country, one team.
In the hour of his greatest triumph, Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus remembered his late Munster colleague Anthony Foley https://t.co/TMUvPcg7zK
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 5, 2019
“That is what people don’t realise. For a few hours last Saturday and with this trophy tour that the Springboks are on, people can put their differences aside and they can really support each other and they can really show how strong the country can be. So it is tremendous.
“I was fortunate to be at the ’95 World Cup when we won it and the joy in the streets with the people. This will exceed that.
“There was an expectation back then to do well but I don’t think there was a big exception to do well now and this reality that we have a black captain will probably bring even more unity to the country… I’m very happy, very proud.”
WATCH: Gloucester’s Johan Ackermann was one of three Premiership club bosses who sat down with RugbyPass at the Gallagher launch in September
Comments on RugbyPass
Results probably skewed by the fact that a few clubs have foreign fly halves in their 30s, but most teams have young English scrum halves. Results also likely to be skewed by the fact that many teams rely on centres and fullbacks to provide depth at 10, whereas they will need to stock a large number of specialist backup 9s.
1 Go to commentsI really get the sense that when all is said and done, the path of least resistance will end up being a merger of Wasps & Worcester that essentially kills the Worcester Warriors brand and sees Wasps permanently playing at Sixways. I’m not saying that’s what should happen or what I want to happen. I just think it’s the easiest rout to take and therefore, will be what happens. Wasps will definitely return to play first, and I suppose it all depends on if they can find support at Sixways. If people turn up and support Wasps in that community, at that ground, I bet they drop the Sevenoaks plan and just remain at Sixways. Under the radar but not totally unrelated, it looks as though London Irish are going to be brought back from the dead by a German consortium and look set to return, likely to the remade Championship. It’s set to have 12 clubs next season with 14 in 2025/26, what do you want to bet those extra 2 are Wasps and London Irish?
1 Go to commentsThe shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
1 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
8 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
56 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
8 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to comments