ACT Brumbies fans can breathe a sigh of relief.
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Tom Banks will be back in action in time for the beginning of the 2022 Super Rugby Pacific season after breaking his arm two months ago.
The 27-year-old returned home to Brisbane after he broke his right arm in the Wallabies' win over the Springboks in September.
It spelled the end of his stint with the national side in the Rugby Championship and left him out of contention for the ensuing Spring Tour.
Banks was one of the favourite fullback picks for Wallabies coach Dave Rennie during the international window, before the setback.
After having surgery and nursing his injury, Banks is back at Brumbies HQ and getting back into contact drills.
His broken arm followed shoulder surgeries in 2014 and 2015, which left him wondering if he would break into the code's professional ranks.
This time the club's programs and support around him ensured he would be back on the park.
"All the reports are going really well. I'm starting that contact progression now, so ... by the start of next year it will be all good and ready to go," Banks said.
"It's been really good and I think I enjoyed the break ... but really excited to get back to training. We've got a new group here, a lot of young boys but everyone's been training really hard.
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Brumbies outside backs Banks and Cam Clark are settling into their Super Rugby pre-season.
The pair are part of the group getting in some extra work before the majority of the side's Wallabies recruits register for pre-season training in the New Year, following their break from international duties.
Clark has been eager to get back into the Super Rugby ranks following a year out of the competition playing in the United States.
The former NSW Waratahs player has played 35 Super Rugby games and will be looking to build on his competition minutes at the Brumbies.
One month into his year-long contract, the 28-year-old said he understood why the ACT program was so successful.
"Coming in, you can tell why it's been a successful program in the past. The way the program is put together to sort of how close knit everyone is here in Canberra. It's really good to see and I mean, it's a world class program. So I'm really happy to be stepping into this," he said.
"It's great to have the opportunity. Being away from Australia and [now to be] back in Australia and playing on home turf is really exciting, with the challenge of playing against some awesome teams.
"I watched on with the Super Rugby AU and the Trans Tasman stuff, getting to challenge yourself against those Kiwi teams, and obviously the couple of new teams will be pretty exciting and add a bit of flair to the competition as well. So I think just to be in this world class competition and really get a chance to test yourself."
The Brumbies' biggest test will come against the New Zealand teams next year, after they won just once against them in 2021.
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