Pedro Rolando's 'surreal' Super Rugby debut for the ACT Brumbies debut a decade in the making

That's what makes the tale of Pedro Rolando, the crafty Argentinian scrumhalf those in John I Dent Cup circles call the "GOAT", such an outlier.

Rolando packed his entire life into a suitcase when he moved to Canberra, dreaming of forcing his way into the ACT Brumbies squad after taking the club rugby scene by storm.

He just didn't expect it would take 10 years to get there.

"Once I started getting older, it starts getting harder to get to that level," Rolando said. "I was not expecting to have this opportunity at this stage of my career, but it was definitely amazing to get it."

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Rolando made his Super Rugby Pacific debut off the bench in the Brumbies' loss to the Crusaders in Christchurch last week. His dream was finally realised, months after being asked to plug a gap in pre-season when the club's Wallabies stars were still away, and long after Stephen Larkham asked him to stick around just a little longer.

Whether Rolando earns another cap remains to be seen. Larkham will welcome back scrumhalf Nic White back for a clash with the NSW Waratahs at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night.

James Slipper, Pete Samu, Rob Valetini and Tom Wright all return to the team list for good measure, having been rested in line with Rugby Australia's request to manage workloads in a World Cup year.

There is a degree of frustration in Canberra given star Waratah Michael Hooper is likely to play his sixth game in a row when the two rival clubs meet this weekend. The policy declaring no frontline Wallaby would play more than five games in succession was agreed to during Dave Rennie's reign as Wallabies coach - but in the Eddie Jones era, there is a degree of flexibility.

How that changes Larkham's future plans is a story for another day, because right now, plenty are still basking in the glow of Super Rugby debuts for Rolando and Wests fullback Declan Meredith.

The Brumbies' third-string scrumhalf Klayton Thorn is due back from injury in the coming weeks, meaning Rolando's stint could soon be over.

Whether he sticks around at the club's Bruce headquarters in search of a second cap or heads back to the boutique gym he owns with his wife remains to be seen.

Even if Rolando manages just one game, the decision to move his life from Argentina to Canberra has worked out in the long run.

"To have the chance to play for the Brumbies against the Crusaders, it's something I thought was never going to happen," Rolando said.

"It's all kind of surreal at the beginning, but after a couple of days in Christchurch, the feeling was overwhelming but it's something I'm going to keep with me forever.

"I don't really know what's going to happen after that. I want to continue with them for as long as I can. I've really enjoyed the experience, being a part of the club has been amazing for me.

"The more I can stay with them, the better. I'll probably have a chat with Larkham and Chris Thomson in the next week and see where we go from here.

"I came straight from Argentina 10 years ago to play rugby for Royals. I was talking to Bill Swain, now the manager of Brumbies, about playing for Royals. They helped organise work, accommodation.

"After a long time, it happened, so it worked out pretty well in the end."

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