The ACT Brumbies will have a secret weapon to call on in their hunt for consecutive road wins, and it comes in the form of their opposition's reigning player of the year.
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Scrumhalf Issak Fines is set to lock horns with his former teammates when the Brumbies face the Western Force in round four of Super Rugby AU at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday.
It will be the Brumbies' first meeting with the Force since March 2017 before the Western Australian franchise was bundled out of the competition in dramatic fashion.
Fines was a revelation during a successful stint with the Perth-based club en route to the Nathan Sharpe Medal last year, the Force's highest individual accolade.
Now he finds himself on the other side of the halfway line as the Brumbies look to continue their unbeaten start to the Australian domestic season.
MORE BRUMBIES
"Definitely a few familiar faces and a few friends so there might be a bit of banter out there. WA loves their rugby and it's good to see them back in Super," Fines said.
"[Getting a chance at the Brumbies has] meant everything to me, I've wanted to play Super for a while, especially for the Brumbies. Being a part of it now is a dream come true.
"It should be good, they've been playing pretty well and it should be a good match up for us."
Fines says he has found a home in Super Rugby after emerging as the Brumbies' saviour with a late match-winner against the NSW Waratahs last week.
The 24-year-old's try paved the way for the Brumbies to become the first travelling team to win a game during the Australian iteration of Super Rugby this season.
Brumbies coach Dan McKellar brought scrumhalf Joe Powell off and backed Fines by injecting him into the game at the 60-minute mark with the competition points there for the taking.
Now the twice-capped Brumby is relishing the chance to take on the Force, whose spirited revival in the Super Rugby format is being led by former Tuggeranong and Canberra Vikings coach Tim Sampson.
"The nerves were gone this time around," Fines said.
"It was exciting to get out there again, it was the second time I got an opportunity and it was a close game so I was pretty excited to just get out there and have a crack.
"It's good, in 20 minutes you get a chance to get settled and you're not rushing yourself so I was pretty happy in the end.
"It was a pretty ugly win but at the end of the day you take ugly wins. I was just happy to be a part of it."
SUPER RUGBY AU ROUND FOUR
Saturday: Western Force v ACT Brumbies at Leichhardt Oval, 7.15pm.
Caden Helmers
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
