ACT Brumbies co-captain Christian Lealiifano says the team must roll with the tag of being favourites but insists they won't be lured into early-season overconfidence before their clash against the Cape Town Stormers.
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The Brumbies are aiming for their fourth consecutive victory to start the Super Rugby season when they play the powerful Stormers at their Newlands fortress on Sunday morning.
The Brumbies are just one of two unbeaten teams in the competition, and if they beat the Stormers it will be just the second time in 11 years they have started a season with four wins in a row.
Coach Stephen Larkham is likely to have a relatively unchanged side as fullback Robbie Coleman pushes for more game time after recovering from a calf injury.
"We haven't really thought too much [about the tag of favourites], I guess the media is putting that label to us," Lealiifano said.
"We're just preparing as best we can to be able to play the game we want to play, and if people are feeling that about us, we've just got to roll with it.
"We've got to focus on getting our processes right to get the right outcome."
The Brumbies received a boost on Wednesday when star flanker David Pocock re-signed with the club on a flexible deal over the next three years.
Pocock will play the 2018 and 2019 seasons in Canberra, but will skip the campaign next year to take a 12-month sabbatical from the game.
The Brumbies have beaten the Wellington Hurricanes, NSW Waratahs and Western Force in the first three rounds, but face a new challenge against a fired up Stormers outfit.
They beat the Stormers in a semi-final at Newlands last year to end the Cape Town side's title hopes.
"But that's very much in the past, we've got a new group now and we're purely focused on this game," Lealiifano said. "Whatever opposition we play, it's about us getting our game right."
The Stormers are renowned for their hard-hitting defence and muscling up in the forward pack, but the Brumbies are wary of a new and more expansive game plan under coach and former Springbok Robbie Fleck.
"It's quite often a daunting task at Newlands, it's a hard place to win," Brumbies playmaker Matt Toomua said.
"We know individually they've got a lot of talent but maybe the most noticeable thing was how much they wanted to shift the ball. With that expansive game we'll have to be wary of our line speed."
SUPER RUGBY ROUND FOUR
Sunday: Cape Town Stormers v ACT Brumbies at Newlands, 4.15am (AEDT). TV time: Live on Fox Sports 2.
