For many Herkie Kruger is just journeyman earning a living at yet another province, but the 30-year-old flyhalf is adamant that he will be part of something special – a revival at the Golden Lions.

Speaking to rugby365 in the build-up to the Lions’ Currie Cup crunch match against Western Province on Cape Town on Saturday, Kruger said it is just a matter of time before the Lions team clicks and start producing winning rugby more consistently.

Kruger’s arrival at the Lions coincided with the acrimonious departure of Eugene Eloff as coach and a host of senior players.

But much like his own career, the Lions’ season has been a bit of a roller coaster ride – victories over the Free State Cheetahs, Leopards and Boland Cavaliers, but defeats against the Blue Bulls, Griquas and Sharks.

Their fifth place on the table means they are still very much in the play-off race, but they can only stay in the hunt if they start performing consistently.

Kruger realises there is a fine line between the demand for instant success and the need to gel as a team.

The Lions haven’t really had time to do much of the latter and neither have they achieved enough of the form.

But there is progress, according the Kruger.

“I truly believe we are moving in the right direction,” Kruger told rugby365, adding that there is no room for the cliched ‘rebuilding phase’ in this Lions team’s vocabulary.

“We are moving in the right direction and things must click at some stage,” Kruger said.

“It’s difficult to say how far we are off that [clicking], but it is about the improvement we make from game to game.

“The more time together the better we’ll get – we just have to continue working hard with the team we have.”

He admitted that it is difficult to find that balance between the demands for instant success and taking time to settle, after having lost so many senior players.

“It’s a tough one, but it takes time on the field … getting to know each other. That is what it is all about – the further the Currie Cup [competition] progresses, the better it will get.

“Just look at Griquas, the perfect example of this. They have been playing with that same team for the past seven months, winning the Vodacom Cup and they have kept that combination going.

“We must just stick with this group and we will gel as a unit.

“The talent is there, it is just a matter of patience.”

Kruger, who arrived at the Lions after a career that has seen him represent more than just a handful of teams in South Africa and abroad, said he is settling in “nicely” into rugby life in Johannesburg.

Having started out his career at the Sharks, where he made his Currie Cup and Super 12 debuts in 2001, Kruger also played for Italian outfit Calvisano and French Second Division club Aurillac. In between he had a lengthy, but interrupted, stint at Griquas.

However, despite all his travels he feels rugby “doesn’t change much” from one team to the next.

“It is obviously a new set-up [at the Lions], but you adjust quickly,” he said, adding that he is enjoying it at the Lions where he has a more senior role.

“I wouldn’t say it too loudly, but I am one of the older guys,” he quipped, adding: “But it is a privilege to be involved at the Lions.”

After nearly a decade of senior rugby, which included a two-year ban for the use of illegal substances, Kruger believes he is ‘streetwise’ enough to take his game to the level required by the Lions.

“There are always things to work on in your game and improvements to make,” he told rugby365.

“I know I can still take it a notch or two up, but I am happy with where I’m at and know what I must do to improve.”

Bio:
Full name: Hercules Christiaan
Surname: Kruger
Birth date: 21 March 1979
Birth city: Kempton Park
Position: Flyhalf / Centre
Physical: 1.83m; 87kg
Marital status: Married
Primary school: Hartswater Primary
High school: Grey College and post matric at Michael House
College/University: University of Durban/Free State

Most difficult opposing provincial team and why? The Bulls – they’re very physical
Favourite rugby memory: My first game for the Sharks in 2001
Biggest disappointment in rugby: two groin operations in 2006/7
Biggest influence on rugby career: My family and high school coaches
Other sports and leisure interests: Golf
Favourite book(s): Wild at Heart and The Shack
Favourite movie(s): Scent of a Women
Favourite actor/actress: Ryan Reynolds / Kate Beckensale
Favourite TV programmes: Any series
Favourite music group(s): Any music
Favourite singer(s): Hillsong
Favourite food: Braaivleis
Favourite item of clothing: Slops and baggies
Favourite holiday destination: France
Goals in rugby: To help the Lions get their pride back
Personal goals: To enjoy rugby and play for God

By Jan de Koning