Swanepoel, who has being plying his trade at the Bulls in Pretoria since he left school, has signed a two-year deal with the Cheetahs to resume his career.

In June, OFM Sport broke the news that the player would be heading back to the province where his career started. 

READ: Swanepoel set to join the Cheetahs

The powerful attacker and defender will be available for both the upcoming Currie Cup which starts next month and the Guinness Pro14 which will get underway in September.

MJ Smith, who is in charge of recruiting for the franchise, told OFM Sport they are delighted to have found a more than capable replacement for Francois Venter.

“We are very happy about Dries coming back,” said the former Free State flyhalf.

“I think that is a quality player, and as you said his roots are here in Bloemfontein - he is a Grey College old boy coming back.

“William Small-Smith and Francois Venter are both players that went that route. The success story of these guys speaks for itself.

“Hopefully Dries can add a lot of value to the team and create a lot of depth in the centre position.”

Swanepoel was the former captain of his Alma mater, and along with the Springbok and Montpellier inside centre, Jan Serfontein, combined for what was one of the deadliest midfield combinations schoolboy rugby has ever seen in South Africa.

Sadly for Swanepoel, his tenure at the Bulls was plagued by numerous injuries and this ultimately lead to limited game time, which saw him being omitted from John Mitchell’s Super Rugby squad earlier in the year.

He did appear on the radar of the Irish outfit, Munster, earlier in the year, however, this was only on a short-term contract as cover for the injury crises they had in the midfield department.

The Cheetahs are starting to build up their midfield rather nicely and with the likes of Nico Lee, Tertius Kruger, William Small-Smith, Carel-Jan Coetzee and Benhard Janse van Rensburg as well, Franco Smith will have plenty of selection headaches in their coming months.

The Free State Cheetahs will open their 2018 Currie Cup on Friday 17 August in Bloemfontein when they host the Blue Bulls at the Toyota Stadium. The big question is, will Swanepoel make his debut for his new team against the side from the Jacaranda City.

@MorganPiek/OFM Sport