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Ruan Ackermann lines up new club following Gloucester exit
By Ian Cameron
Ruan Ackermann is in advanced talks to join the Stormers following his release by Gloucester, which the West Country club announced before the end of last season.
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The back-rower made over 170 appearances for the Cherry & Whites, helping them win the Premiership Rugby Cup in 2024 and reach the Challenge Cup final.
He was one of 19 players to depart Kingsholm at the end of the season, just a year after coming close to joining Japanese outfit Yokohama Canon Eagles on a lucrative two-year deal — a move Gloucester ultimately blocked.
Ackermann, who followed his father Johan from the Lions in 2017 when the elder Ackermann was appointed head coach, has long been touted for a return to his homeland.
He held talks with the Lions in February 2024 before opting to remain at Gloucester, signing a new contract the club insisted he see out despite late interest from Japan.
“I’m getting to a stage now in my life where there was a feeling from the club and me that I feel I needed to go. It’s more the reality sank in the last two or three months when you say to them, ‘I probably need to move on’.
“The club has got their ambitions, and mine has changed a bit because of how things are going, and [you have to] try to accept it,” he told BBC Radio Gloucestershire.
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Stormers boss John Dobson has been hit by a hip injury to Junior Springbok Divan Fuller, which is likely to rule the youngster out of the first half of next season, and he is eyeing Ackermann as an experienced replacement.
Ackermann, who made 33 appearances for the Lions, was long expected to follow his father’s career path, but he now looks set to seal a move to Cape Town to play in the United Rugby Championship, barring any late hitches.
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