Baden Godfrey is itching to get back out on the field.
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A month has passed since Vikings were defeated by Gungahlin in the John I Dent Cup grand final, the flanker feeling the pain of disappointment after the decider.
In a perfect world, Godfrey would have jumped straight out of club rugby and into a national third tier. Instead, he's spent the past few weeks training at Brumbies HQ during an extended gap in the calendar.
While the emerging talent has made the most of his time in a professional environment, there is no substitute for playing time against quality opposition.
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ACT officials have taken matters into their own hands to fill the gaps, coach Stephen Larkham naming a squad for a two-game tour of Japan on Tuesday.
Godfrey is one of a host of youngsters in the team and he's determined to make the most of his chance against international opponents.
"I'll just take every opportunity as it comes," he said. "However much game time I get, I'll just nail away at that on and off the field, keep working and refine the craft.
"The boys are great at helping me teaching-wise so I'll take on board whatever that have to say. I have a bit of faith in myself and hopefully I'll perform when the time comes."
The demise of the National Rugby Championship in 2020 left a gap in the Australian pathway and has been a topic of fierce discussion in the past few years.
The importance of a third tier has come into focus following the Wallabies' woeful World Cup and many see it as a crucial stepping stone to Super Rugby.
Australian teams are competitive with New Zealand sides at under 18 and under 20 level, however have not held the Bledisloe since 2002, with the Kiwis doing a better job developing players in the early years of their professional careers.
Jones' experiment with a young, untested World Cup squad backfired significantly and many players were selected well before their time.
Rugby Australia is determined to overhaul the sport's structure through centralisation, however chief executive Phil Waugh told The Canberra Times in July a national third tier is not a priority.
Larkham feels the NRC is a crucial development pathway and urged RA to revive the competition.
"There's been a big push from the Brumbies and I think the other states to try and get that tier-three competition," he said.
"I've heard good things that there's potential for it to start within the next two years. It's something we need, particularly when you look back through the last three years in COVID and how that wrecked the foundation of the game in terms of players getting game time.
"This would be a great opportunity for those guys who missed out through that period to get some more high-level games, which is your best way of developing. You gain most of your knowledge and experience or exposure in those games."
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