Dewald Senekal joins Benetton following exit of ex-Leicester Tiger

Benetton have announced the appointment of Dewald Senekal as the new breakdown and contact area coach following the departure of Julian Salvi.

Born in Uitenhage, South Africa, Senekal has an extensive background in professional rugby having played for the Cheetahs, Lions, RC Toulon, Agen and Bayonne.

After transitioning to coaching in 2015, Senekal has held positions at Bayonne, Grenoble, Stade Français and Connacht before most recently serving as a coach at Oyonnax in the TOP14.

"I am extremely excited about the opportunity to join the team as I have seen the club go from strength to strength over the last 8 years that I have faced them," said Senekal. "I respect all the staff members a lot and I want to learn from them, joining one of the best clubs in the URC and in Europe is a great opportunity and I feel very privileged.

"I hope to settle in quickly with the players, staff and the community around the club. I want to be able to quickly add value to the environment by sharing my experience with Marco (Bortolami, ed.) and the team."

Benetton general manager Antonio Pavanello said: "Following the departure of Salvi, we moved to find a coach who would allow us to continue the path of growth in a delicate and decisive aspect of the game such as the breakdown and more generally the contact area.

"We have therefore identified in Dewald the most suitable profile to fill this role, as well as support to the management of forwards, since with his experience both in the URC and in other leagues he will be able to further raise the level of our technical staff."