Sebastian de Chaves has extended his stay with Newcastle Falcons, signing a two-year contract.

The 33-year-old lock-forward is in his second spell with the Kingston Park club, for whom he has made 54 appearances.

Delighted to have agreed his new deal, De Chaves said: “I feel really excited about signing here for another two seasons.

“I’ve loved my time here, both the city and the club, and I enjoy being around the boys.

“I’m very positive about the future here at the Falcons. Everyone knows results haven’t gone our way but we’re working towards something, and we’ve got really good people here.

“We’ve got that mix of homegrown lads who have been here their whole careers, and some who have come in and brought their experiences of other environments.

“It’s a nice mix which contributes to a great feeling off the field, and then on the rugby side everyone is really united in terms of coming together and working hard to make positive improvements.”

Forwards coach Micky Ward said: “Seb is an outstanding professional who gets the best out of himself and sets a really good example for the group.

“He’s a role model who challenges people in a really positive way, and he has ran the line-out well for us. I’m glad that we’ll be able to work with him for another couple of seasons, and I’ve got a lot of admiration for the way in which Seb applies himself.”

As well as his professional rugby career De Chaves is also looking towards his future, explaining: “I’m currently going through my stage two chartership in sports and exercise psychology.

“I was lucky enough to link up with one of my old Leicester Tigers team-mates, Joe Cain, who is the head of rugby at Northumbria University. I do some of the sports psychology support for the men’s and women’s rugby teams, and some of their men’s football stuff, and it’s going really well.

“I also try and chip in to help where I can with the senior academy here at the Falcons, and it’s an exciting avenue which I’m enjoying exploring.”