ACT Brumbies and Canberra Vikings back-rower Butler insists he's still got plenty of energy left in the tank for one last charge at the end of a hectic year of rugby.

Butler will play his 29th game of the year when Canberra takes on Brisbane City in the curtain-raiser to the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday night.

It's a workload unrivalled in Canberra. But the Brett Robinson Award winner as the Brumbies' best player wants to finish his year on a high by helping lift the Vikings into the NRC finals and then to the premiership.

"I'd much rather be playing footy than be doing pre-season training, so I'd rather that we keep going right through until the grand final," Butler said.

"Getting to play for another three weeks would be a perfect situation. I am looking forward to break. It's been an unbelievable year, if I could finish with an NRC championship, that would be fantastic."

Butler has conquered all before him this year after he was thrust into a bigger than expected role at the Brumbies following David Pocock's season-ending knee injury.

Butler stepped up to fill Pocock's No. 7 jersey and played a crucial role in lifting the Brumbies into the Super Rugby finals.

When the Brumbies were knocked out by eventual champions the NSW Waratahs, Butler switched his focus to Canberra's first-grade competition and was part of the Tuggeranong Vikings' title.

To top that off, he was crowned the Brumbies' best player in a team full of Wallaby experience and now stands alongside George Smith, Matt Giteau and Stephen Moore as recipients of the club's biggest prize.

But the Canberra Vikings need to beat Brisbane City and then rely on the NSW Country Eagles beating the Perth Spirit to claim a top-four berth in the NRC's inaugural year.

The Vikings are in the unusual position of being on the cusp of a finals appearance despite having won just two games during the season so far.

Captain Fotu Auelua admitted the team was embarrassed by some of its results, given it is littered with Super Rugby players.

"It's going to be a brutal game, it's tough for us," Auelua said.

"We've got to put all of our eggs in one basket ... we're either coming back to Canberra preparing for a final or we're coming back with our heads down.

"I'm sure the boys are feeling a little bit embarrassed, we expected a lot of ourselves and we had to stand up and deliver. The determination is there, it's just the minor details letting us down."