About 16 minutes later he came from the park on the wrong end of a 35-5 touch up at the hands of the Braidwood Redbacks - but the former Wallaby could hardly wipe the smile off his face.

Because it was a dream way for the "hometown heroes" to open the day at the Braidwood Bushfire Sevens tournament on Saturday.

Forty-five teams descended upon the Braidwood Recreation Ground for the tournament designed to help a struggling community back to its feet in the midst of a harrowing summer.

Among them were the Jindabyne Bushpigs, the Mudchooks of Bungendore, the Queanbeyan Whites, Gungahlin Eagles, clubs from Sydney and an ACT Fire and Rescue outfit.

It was a turnout fit for the occasion as communities bound together to revive the historic NSW town of Braidwood after the Currowan bushfire severed the road between the ACT and south coast throughout the holiday period.

It put a halt to traffic through the town and forced businesses to close for the foreseeable future. So this tournament was about far more than rugby, it was a chance to lend a helping hand.

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Jindabyne won the women's final 17-7 over Wests, while West Harbour pipped Queanbeyan 12-5 to claim the men's crown.

But the one team turning more heads than most were The Dockheads, a side boasting former ACT Brumbies like Alexander, Henry Vanderglas and Huia Edmonds.

But Alexander jokes he was still waiting on one prized recruit to turn up at the crowded venue before his side's final hit-out against West Harbour.

"We had Frankie Fainifo, Andrew Smith, Pete Kimlin ... Jerry Yanuyanutawa is apparently on his way but he has a Fijian watch, so he always seems to be running late," Alexander said.

"Our old Brumbies media manager Elliott Woods is here. Patty McCabe is here as our legal counsel just in case there is any misdemeanours on or off the field, Patty is our legal representation.

"We've got a few old mates, and a few of my uni mates I haven't played with since our Uni Norths colts days.

"We've shown some glimpses, but consistency has been eluding us. Both of my brothers are here playing as well, so it's been fun playing with them and The Dock staff. We're looking forward to a few beers."

For so many in Braidwood and the surrounding regions, a beer and a laugh over the night's yabbie race could not have come sooner. Nor could the much-needed rain which slowed the contests down.

The Brumbies threw their weight behind the event hours after continuing their unbeaten start to the Super Rugby season. So too did a pair of Australian sevens rugby stars in Lewis Holland and Charlotte Caslick.

"I haven't played a social game of rugby in 13 years, so to get out and have a run around for a great cause is really good," Alexander said.

"It's been a great day, catching up with some mates I haven't seen for a long time who have made the trip down.

"It looks like rugby is the winner, hopefully Braidwood can raise a bit of money just to get the town up and running again.

"From all of the locals we've been chatting to, it means a lot to have the Brumbies come out and support the day."