He was the head coach of the Sharks U21 side in 1996 and 1997 and took charge of the Natal Wildebeest in the 1998 Vodacom Cup, guiding the team to the semi-finals of the competition.
He returned to Durban in 2004 to join as the head and skills coach of the Sharks Academy, helping out at Vodacom Cup, Under-21 and Under-19 level.
[3] The pair oversaw a complete turnaround in fortunes for the side; from relegation at the end of the 2012 Super Rugby season (they were replaced by the Southern Kings for 2013, the Lions not only won promotion back to the Super Rugby competition for 2014, but they achieved their highest points tally and number of wins since they competed in the tournament as the Cats.
[4] In the 2016 Super Rugby season the Lions, under Ackerman and De Bruyn's guidance, topped the South African Conference and reached the final of the competition, which they lost to New Zealand side, the Hurricanes.
After Ackermann accepted the head coaching job at English side Gloucester, de Bruin was named as his replacement from 2018 onwards.