Australia's most successful Super Rugby franchise could be on the verge of another golden era as the ACT Brumbies continue to build around the code's rising stars.
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The Brumbies have a chance to secure a home ground advantage in the Super Rugby AU decider when they meet the Western Force at Canberra Stadium on Friday.
The championship favourites will be buoyed by the return of Wallabies hooker Folau Fainga'a from a calf injury, with the Wallaby set to start from the bench behind Connal McInerney.
Reesjan Pasitoa is set to be named on the bench for a clash with the competition's struggling nomads while Joe Powell returns to the starting XV at scrumhalf.
Brumbies coach Dan McKellar says the club is reaping the rewards of a slow build with potential Wallabies-in-waiting Tom Wright and Cadeyrn Neville re-signing with the club in recent weeks.
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They join a raft of internationals tied to the club beyond this season in captain Allan Alaalatoa, Scott Sio, Pete Samu, Tom Banks and Nic White. But it's the depth that stands out on game day with a sprinkling Wallabies coming off the bench.
"It's taken a couple of years to put this group together and the beauty is we've managed to retain a lot of them as well," McKellar said.
"It says a lot about the program and the fact they're enjoying being at the club. Any coach will tell you, if you're going to win competitions you need quality across the board.
"You're never going to do it with 15 or 23 good players, you need a good group of 35 to 40. We're still in a pretty good position.
"We've still got a lot of players at the beginning of their careers and we're doing a good job with developing them and exposing them at the right time, which allows them to perform.
"Then if they perform, they get a lot of confidence on the back of that. They understand quickly they belong at this level."
That mentality boosts a winning mindset the Brumbies pride themselves on - something which emerged as a major focus before they thrashed NSW last week.
"I've been happy with our mindset for the best part of the season to be honest," McKellar said.
"We've had backs against the wall, teams were fired up and ready to roll us, and we managed to dig our way out of it.
"The momentum was probably against us at that time [last week], we managed to dig in and change the momentum back in our favour.
"A winning mindset is one of our pillars to begin with, but it's something we have spoken about a lot in 2020."
SUPER RUGBY AU ROUND NINE
Friday: ACT Brumbies v Western Force at Canberra Stadium, 7.05pm.
Caden Helmers
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
