Pete Samu says depth bolstering ACT Brumbies' Super Rugby bid

But he needn't have worried leading into the ACT Brumbies' clash with the Melbourne Rebels at Canberra Stadium on Friday night.

"I had mum and dad over on the weekend, so a lot of home cooked meals got me back up there very quickly," Samu said.

So Samu has jumped back up to something close to the 102 kilogram mark.

But Brumbies outside back Tom Wright had another question on his mind when he jumped into Samu's press conference on Monday.

Is the famous mullet going to make a return this year?

"Yeah mate, as you can see I have just started laying the foundations down. Hopefully in a couple of months she'll be back," Samu grinned.

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The Brumbies are set to get a boost ahead of the Rebels clash with inside centre Irae Simone signing a two-year contract extension with the club.

Now just as Samu lays the foundations for the haircut that helps to turn him into something of a cult hero, the Brumbies are building towards a crucial Australian derby on their home turf.

They do so buoyed by the prospect of players pushing for spots in Dan McKellar's match day squad who are keeping the heat on the starting group.

Beyond Samu in the back-row stocks are the likes of Tom Cusack, Will Miller, Rob Valetini and Lachlan McCaffrey.

The 28-year-old says the competition for spots will be a driving force for the Brumbies this season as they look to atone for a semi-final loss last year.

"We want that competition pushing the boys in front and pushing the young boys coming up as well. That depth is good for the team and good for the young boys going forward," Samu said.

"It was good to start off, I felt a bit rusty and the conditions didn't help. Hopefully with a few more games I can get back to playing some good footy.

"You always want to start your season off on the front foot and our boys definitely did that. There were a lot of smiles around [on Monday morning], and definitely a few sore bodies as well.

"We definitely took a lot of learnings out of that, and it boosts our confidence leading into this week. We'll just stick to our processes and hopefully we can get the job done this weekend.

"They've got threats all over the park, so we'll stick to our processes, play a bit of eyes up footy and hopefully get the result."

The Rebels will arrive in Canberra with a point to prove after dropping their season opener on the road to the Japan Sunwolves.

But Wright has no qualms about the task at hand given he forms part of a team which proved their character to each other when their backs were to the wall in scorching conditions last week.

"Obviously only playing them the week before last in a trial game in Albury, we're pretty familiar with each other," Wright said.

"It helps both sides I suppose. Both are pretty familiar with each other's game and what each other wants to do.

"But in saying that, both sides probably held most of their tricks up their sleeve. Come Friday you'll probably see a bit more than what we showed in Albury.

"The learnings from 2019 were we're obviously wanting to start the season fast and reward our home fans."