Japan coach Eddie Jones‘s rise in stock has not been bad news for all South African fans, with the Australian-born mastermind named as the new coach of Super Rugby side DHL Stormers.

The Cape Town-based side announced their new coaching addition on Monday, two days after the Springboks succumbed to Jones’s Japan side in Brighton in their opening World Cup game.

Stormers director of rugby Gert Smal says Jones was an obvious candidate for the vacant position and he hopes the 55-year-old can help develop the current group of players.

“Eddie was always on my mind in terms of potential external candidates and it’s a massive coup that we have signed a coach of his ability – really, his coaching credentials and achievements do speak for themselves,” he said in a statement on the club’s website.

“I really enjoyed our interactions and working with Eddie during the 2007 World Cup, he can add even more value here – both in terms of pushing for trophies and, importantly, in helping the continued development of our coaches and players.”

It will be Jones’s third stint in Super Rugby, having coached the ACT Brumbies between 1998-2001 and the Queensland Reds in 2007, before working with South Africa as an assistant as they won the World Cup in the same year.

Jones commented: “I am a coach that enjoys a challenge and I see this job as a huge challenge, but one that excites me tremendously.

“Having worked with the Springboks in 2007, and in the process working closely with people like Gert Smal, Allister Coetzee, Jean de Villiers and Schalk Burger, it gave me a brief taste of what Stormers rugby and Western Cape rugby is all about.

“I am well aware of the responsibilities that come with this job, one of the biggest franchise jobs in world rugby, but I am also excited about the talent available in the DHL Stormers squad and the potential of this playing squad. This is a challenge I am looking forward to.”