From the time he first picked up a rugby ball, Ruan Ackermann wanted to be a Springbok. His father Johan played 13 Tests for South Africa and offered a tangible vision of his own future.
Raised in Pretoria, the younger Ackermann has built his world views on the bedrock of Afrikaans conservatism that places a high value in work ethic, discipline and a burning desire to don the leaping antelope at the highest level.
It therefore surprises even himself when he admits that his head has been turned. Now his ambitions lie elsewhere.
“My goal is to play Test rugby for England”, Ackermann tells T...