The Brumbies started pre-season training on Monday, ushering several new faces and untested Super Rugby talent to fill the void of departed stars.

Christian Lealiifano, David Pocock, Henry Speight, Sam Carter and Rory Arnold have left a sizable hole in the Brumbies' plans to end a 16-year championship drought.

The task will fall on to the shoulders of several young guns, including Reesjan Pasitoa, Noah Lolesio, Solomone Kata, Rob Valetini, Darcy Swain and Nick Frost.

Many of them were still in nappies the last time the Brumbies won the Super Rugby title in 2004. So to remind them of the history, McKellar has split his players into four "mini teams" with significant years plastered across their chests.

Tom Banks and his crew will wear 2013 - the year the Brumbies beat the British and Irish Lions. Others will wear 1996, the foundation year. Then 2001 and 2004 to mark title-winning seasons.

"It gives us a link to the past," McKellar said. "We run a mini teams competition for the entire year, set them little challenges and create relationships.

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"It is a new start, but it is normally that way pre-Christmas. We've still got 12 or 13 guys to come back [from Wallabies] or from rehab.

"That will happen over the next few weeks. It's always exciting at this time of year to see how guys handle the step up. You soon get an idea of which guys have the right attitude."

The five-week training block before Christmas will give McKellar an indication of which untested players are ready to make their mark next year.

Wallabies representatives will return to training in January, giving them just three weeks to prepare for the earliest start to Super Rugby in the competition's 25-year history.

The Brumbies will play against the Queensland Reds at Canberra Stadium on January 31, kick-starting the 2020 campaign with three homes games in a row.

McKellar will use training to find his best combinations, with youngsters Noah Lolesio, Reesjan Pasitoa and Bayley Kuenzle competing for the vacant playmaker role.

Tom Cusack, Andy Muirhead, Tom Banks, Irae Simone, Joe Powell and Pete Samu will form the first pre-season leadership group.

Lachlan McCaffrey will return to Canberra after a playing stint in Japan, while Wallabies Scott Sio, Allan Alaalatoa, Folau Faingaa and Tevita Kuridrani will return next year.

"We had a tough morning today, put a line in the sand for the players to understand what pre-season is all about," McKellar said.

"We did it a little bit different to how a Tuesday would have looked in previous years. This year we're going more down the traditional conditioning path and then focusing on our skills. There's a long way to go, but we're off and running.

"What we stressed before the break was to come back [to training] in a position to get better, not to have to catch up."

McKellar says he is yet to make a decision on who will replace Lealiifano as the team's captain, but is confident he has the leadership depth to find a capable replacement.

The Brumbies have also had changes off the field, with Ben Serpell leaving after seven years, most of those spent as the athletic performance director. He has been replaced by John Mitchell, while former Canberra Raiders wrestling coach Steve Babic is also working with the Brumbies.