Andy Muirhead and Cadeyrn Neville will miss the Brumbies' three-match trip to New Zealand after succumbing to injuries suffered in Saturday's Super Rugby AU final loss to the Queensland Reds.
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Both are awaiting scan results which will determine their medium-term future - Muirhead on an ankle, and Neville on a shoulder - and will not be included in Dan McKellar's 28-man squad which jets across the ditch on Thursday to begin their Trans Tasman campaign.
McKellar will finalise the make up of his traveling squad on Wednesday, before settling on a team to take on the all-conquering Crusaders on Saturday.
The two-and-a-half week trip to New Zealand marks the club's most extensive tour since the COVID-19 pandemic, which lock Nick Frost said would provide the perfect tonic to getting over the weekend's disappointment.
"It's probably the longest time we're going to be away together in a few years, it's great you get to spend every day with your mates as well," Frost said.
"You're going on tour, that's what part of rugby's about, enjoyment. Two and a half three weeks you're living with your best mates, it probably can't get any better.
"We don't have much time to reflect, we're straight into it which is good, it just pushes it aside. The show goes on pretty much. We've just got to take it in our stride now. We use it a bit emotionally and the boys will get up for a massive game on the weekend."
The Brumbies face arguably the toughest Trans Tasman rugby draw of any Australian side, with away games against the Chiefs and Blues to follow Saturday's Crusaders clash, before a return home.
Super Rugby AU sides have been widely tipped to provide inferior opposition to their New Zealand counterparts, but Forst refused to buy into that line of commentary.
"We're just expecting to go and play, we've got no fear to be honest, we've got nothing to lose," Frost said.
"We've been playing each other in the Australian domestic comps. We're just going out there to have a red hot crack, going to enjoy ourselves.
"Seeing the draw that we had playing the Crusaders away, playing at Eden Park, playing against these great teams is a really good challenge for us as well so we're really looking forward to it."
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Fellow back rower Darcy Swain was equally bullish about the Brumbies' prospects in New Zealand.
"It'll be a good challenge to go over there and play in New Zealand, play their style, it'll be tough, especially after losing a couple of bodies on the weekend and I know a lot of bodies are sore, but it's a good way to recoup ourselves and get on with it," Swain said.
"[It's] just a new challenge in itself really, when you think about it we've played those teams in Australia twice now and then previously last year, [and in] trial games, we know each other's shapes.
"We're all pretty keen rugby watchers, we'll all watch the [NZ] games on the weekend when they're not clashing with our games.
"We've done a bit of preview today and yesterday too [on the Crusaders]. It's just knowing a little bit of what they're doing, what to expect when we go over but back ourselves at the same time.
"We're going to stick together and we're going to play our rugby."
James Buckley
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
James is a Queanbeyan boy enjoying his second stint at the Canberra Times, more than eight years on from his first. In between he's traveled the world, and spent time covering sport in Sydney.
