Johan Ackermann has praised Cheswill Jooste following the 20-year-old's hat-trick against Stade Français in the Bulls' opening Investec Champions Cup fixture at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, while cautioning the winger that there remains room to improve.
Jooste, who was sick on Monday and Tuesday and only rejoined the squad on Thursday, played the full 80 minutes and was named man of the match. He finished with 11 carries, 206 metres made, six clean breaks and two offloads, opening the scoring inside the first minute before remaining a constant threat throughout.
Ackermann was careful to frame the performance within the team context. "A lot of players do stuff to put that player in that position, but obviously Cheswill showed his individual ability in that kick-off try," he said, drawing a parallel with the recognition given to Cameron Hanekom the previous week after the Bulls' URC win over the Lions — a match in which Jooste also scored.
"I'm proud of his performance. I'm pleased for him also because he was sick on Monday and Tuesday, and he didn't train with us. He got in on Thursday and got through training, and we selected him. He backed it up with a good performance."
The Vredenburg-born back has had a rapid 18 months, moving from his URC debut against the Ospreys — in which he scored twice in a 53-40 Bulls win — to back-to-back U20 World Rugby Championship titles with the Junior Boks, including the defence of the title in Georgia in July. He has also trained with the Springbok squad following an alignment camp invitation earlier this year.
Ackermann's message after Saturday's standout display was measured. "The challenge now is to stay humble and to learn and to grow from that. There were opportunities; there are areas where we felt he could've made some good decisions. But we're just pleased with where he is from a confidence point of view and how he's grown since he started to play senior rugby."