Johan Ackermann confident the Bulls have enough depth at lock

Nortje is set to join Japan League One club Kubota Spears at the end of the season.

The 27-year-old has spent his entire career with the Bulls since representing the franchise in the U18 academy week in 2016 and has developed into a world-class lock with 18 caps for the Springboks.

His experience and quality have been crucial in helping the Bulls turn around a poor start to the 2026 United Rugby Championship season, especially in the lineouts, where he is a premier jumper and primary target.

However, despite the apparently massive hole his departure will leave in the middle of the Bulls scrum, Ackermann has backed the depth of his squad to fill in.

“You lose experience and leadership with Ruan’s departure,” Ackermann told Rapport.

“I think we have good depth at lock in JF, Reinhardt and Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg.

“Nicolaas also offers experience. Even JF and Reinhardt have played a lot of matches in the United Rugby Championship. Each has their strengths.

“We selected Reinhardt at five lock earlier this year when Ruan was unavailable. He also has the ability to play seven flank.

“I see a lot of potential in JF, as with Reinhardt. He is a hard-working lock. Then you have Nicolaas who has a lot of experience and has played all over the world.

“Each of the players knows what they need to work on to make use of new opportunities."