Tupou wanted to know that he was coming to a club that had lofty aspirations. He was quickly convinced that Foote was setting the club up for success.

“The big idea is we want to play finals,” Foote said.

“The table swings last year, we just missed out by a point. Once you’re in the finals, then it’s week by week, so we’re definitely still focused on making the finals this year.

“Rugby in Victoria, I’ll be honest, it’s a challenging job. You’re not littered with a whole lot of depth. But doing this job with people you admire and love is something very special to me, and we’ve got a great coaching staff and a really good leadership group also.

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“My feeling is of course we can win it, I’m a very optimistic person, but I’ve also learned we’ve got to get into that position first and by playing a good brand of rugby the belief will come.”

Sound familiar?

“I loved what Craig [McRae] did around the values and acting like winners, 100 per cent that had an impact on me,” said the South African-born Foote, who once acted as a double for Matt Damon in the movie Invictus.

But while the Magpies created an insatiable belief about winning from any position, even if it meant being four goals down at the final change, Foote has taken a slightly different philosophy given rugby union is completely different.

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“In the past we’ve probably been a bit conservative,” he said.

“If you ever had to chase a game down, I’m not sure if guys believe they can do that, whereas if you start with an attacking brand of rugby, and you’re scoring a lot of points, I think it’s easier to dial up the defence than the other way round.

“I’ve definitely given guys licence to attack and express themselves and be fearless, but now I’ve got to get the balance right about them being resolute and being hard-edged.”

Collingwood is not the only cross-code connection Foote has made. He has created a healthy relationship with Melbourne Storm, the state’s only National Rugby League side, and also hired Hawthorn’s performance psychologist who splits his time between clubs.

While externally many are surprised the Rebels have won two of their seven games this season, Foote isn’t resting on his laurels, not afraid to dream of an unlikely premiership - one that would warrant another movie starring Damon.

“We’re probably more disappointed in some of our other results, not getting them, but we weren’t surprised about beating the Reds and the Waratahs,” Foote said.

“We had a good feeling about our game and where it’s getting to. We just want to mirror that against some of the Kiwi teams now.”

The Rebels host the Crusaders at AAMI Park on Friday night.

Watch all the action from the Super Rugby Pacific with every match streaming ad-free, live and on demand on Stan Sport.