A chance meeting with a parent of a Steamers’ junior at an international rugby clash, whilst they were living in Melbourne, eventually led to the duo committing to the Border outfit for the 2019 season.

Their visas required a certain number of days working in rural areas and the pair jumped at the chance.

Both Cortez and Ceppi play club rugby in the Chilean capital of Santiago, but have always dreamed to experience the sport they love overseas.

The club has welcomed them with open arms and they’ve been keen to impress in the opening two weeks of pre-season.

“We feel a responsibility with all of them because they are really good to us,” Cortez said.

“We want to work hard and play really well.

“I’d really like to be champions with them and I think that’s a possibility if we play together and support each other on the field.”

Since training with the club, Cortez admitted he has enjoyed different styles of rugby and coaching.

“It will also be interesting to play with players from other countries,” he said.

“Some of the guys are from Fiji, South Africa and England and they all have different characteristics.”

Ceppi said rugby is becoming increasingly popular in Chile, particularly in the sevens format, helped by the success of Argentinian national team on the world stage.

But he knows playing in Australia will be a massive challenge.

“It’s a better skill level here, we haven’t played yet but we can see it in training,” Ceppi said.

“We were a little bit scared at the beginning to play rugby (in Melbourne) because of the injuries, but here we can feel the support.

“They’ve all been so nice to us and we’re very happy to be part of the club.

“I really hope we can reach the finals with the club and be part of the life here in Albury.

“We have already been doing that and we’re really happy here.

“It’s been very physical, but it’s a good preparation for the year.

“The pre-season is the main thing in rugby because you’re preparing for the rest of the year.

“It’s really good to be training earlier and practicing technical and tactical things, as well as doing the physical work.”

Once they’ve had a full season in Australia, Cortez hinted he would be interested to play rugby in other countries, including New Zealand.

READ MORE