Tom Wright is the 'game-changer' boosting the ACT Brumbies in Super Rugby AU

Wright makes his return to the Brumbies' XV for a clash with the NSW Waratahs at the Sydney Cricket Ground this week.

Friday night's clash marks the Test-capped winger's first game of the season after overcoming a knee injury which has kept him on ice since pre-season.

Yet Wright was still named in Wallabies coach Dave Rennie's 40-man squad for an upcoming camp in a sign of how highly-rated the 23-year-old flyer is.

"He's been itching to get out there. We're expecting him not to do too much, not to think he has to make up for any time he hasn't spent on the field and overplay his hand," Brumbies captain Nic White said.

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"He's a genuine finisher, he's the quickest bloke we've got here and he has got skills that are pretty special and unique.

"We don't want him chasing the game and chasing those big moments, they seem to find their way to Wrighty and we're certainly stoked to have a guy like him back on the wing, he's a game-changer."

The Waratahs will be boosted by the return of captain and scrumhalf Jake Gordon as they look to break their duck amid a tumultuous year for the club.

NSW have lost their opening five games by an average margin of 28 points and assistant coaches Jason Gilmore and Chris Whitaker have been appointed as interim replacements for sacked mentor Rob Penney.

Now pressure is mounting on club bosses to be held accountable for the Waratahs' alarming decline, with the Brumbies bracing for an ambush in Sydney.

"I bet it's been hard for [Gordon] to sit back and watch, especially as skipper, what's been happening with the Tahs," White said.

"He's going to want to have a huge impact both as a captain and as a player as well. Around the breakdown I've got to be on my toes big time.

"They'll be pretty emotive, a lot of motivation there for the side. We're going to have to meet that at the start of the game. We're going to have to weather a fair storm from them but hopefully we come out the other side of that and get back to playing the way we want to play."

The Brumbies thrashed the Waratahs to the tune of 51 points when the two sides met in Canberra earlier this season but White is adamant that counts for nothing come Friday night.

"A week is a long time in footy and a month is even longer," White said.

"We haven't really looked at that game at all. We know the team we're coming up against this weekend is going to be completely different to that.

"We're coming up against a side that is hurting after the week they've had, so we're certainly not thinking about the last time we played them and that sort of scoreline. We know it's going to be an absolute battle."

SUPER RUGBY AU ROUND SEVEN

Friday: NSW Waratahs v ACT Brumbies at Sydney Cricket Ground, 7.45pm. Broadcast: Live on Stan Sport.

ACT Brumbies squad: 1. Harry Lloyd, 2. Folau Fainga'a, 3. James Slipper, 4. Nick Frost, 5. Cadeyrn Neville, 6. Rob Valetini, 7. Tom Cusack, 8. Pete Samu, 9. Nic White (c), 10. Noah Lolesio, 11. Andy Muirhead, 12. Irae Simone, 13. Len Ikitau, 14. Tom Wright, 15. Tom Banks. Replacements: 16. Lachlan Lonergan, 17. Fred Kaihea, 18. Sefo Kautai, 19. James Tucker, 20. Rory Scott, 21. Ryan Lonergan, 22. Bayley Kuenzle, 23. Mack Hansen.

NSW Waratahs squad: 1. Angus Bell, 2. David Porecki, 3. Harry Johnson-Holmes, 4. Jeremy Williams, 5. Max Douglas, 6. Hugh Sinclair, 7. Carlo Tizzano, 8. Will Harris, 9. Jake Gordon (c), 10. Will Harrison, 11. James Ramm, 12. Lalakai Foketi, 13. Izaia Perese, 14. Alex Newsome, 15. Jack Maddocks. Replacements: 16. Tom Horton, 17. Tetera Faulkner, 18. Darcy Breen, 19. Michael Wood, 20. Charlie Gamble, 21. Jack Grant, 22. Tane Edmed, 23. Mark Nawaqanitawase.

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