ACT Brumbies prop Fred Kaihea relishing the chance to learn from ex-Wallaby Dan Palmer

But it's the former Wallabies prop's ability to break down the science behind the scrum that has the potential to take the ACT Brumbies' forward pack to the next level.

The Brumbies scrum coach has peeled the art back to its bare bones during pre-season training. On the surface the slow build could almost seem boring, but emerging loosehead prop Fred Kaihea is relishing every moment.

"To be honest, I am trying to take in everything he tells me because obviously he's probably the best scrum coach I've ever had and he probably will be ever," Kaihea said.

"Just all the technical stuff ... I've talked to him a fair bit and I've got a few habits he is trying to get me to get out of, especially when I put all my weight on my inside foot and with my binding, sinking my hips down low.

MORE RUGBY UNION

"It's good with a smaller group now, we can just get a lot of one-on-one sessions with Palms and do all the stuff to come together as a solid eight.

"We've just been adding on as the weeks go by, so this week will be the toughest going into our Christmas break."

The absence of Test props Allan Alaalatoa and James Slipper has given the likes of Kaihea, Tom Ross and Sefo Kautai valuable time in the saddle during pre-season training.

Already Brumbies officials are beginning to see the benefits. Kaihea is ironing out his technique, Ross looks more like a readymade Super Rugby player with every session, and Kautai is said to have been sneaking in repetitions at both loosehead and tighthead.

Alaalatoa and Slipper will return to training in the new year after earning a break following the Spring Tour, while Scott Sio is also slated to return when training resumes in January.

Kaihea is counting down the days until he can rub shoulders with the Test veterans again.

"Slips is probably going to be annoyed by me before the season even starts," Kaihea grinned.

"Because I'm going to be asking him every little thing about scrums and every person he comes up against just so I can have a clue, just in case I come up against them."

This pre-season marks Kaihea's first as a full-time member of the Brumbies squad after the Queanbeyan Whites prop signed with the club for the 2022 campaign.

Kaihea was drafted into Dan McKellar's top squad via the club's academy this year and made his Super Rugby AU debut before his season was curtailed by a knee injury.

It is a stage Kaihea often feared he wouldn't reach.

Once a teenager bouncing between homes in Christchurch and a notoriously tough area in south Auckland, Kaihea moved across the Tasman as a 14-year-old when a holiday turned into a permanent stay.

He rose through the ranks at the Whites and became an irresistible option for Brumbies coaches. Now Kaihea is determined to build on his taste of Super Rugby and "live out the full dream".

"Just last year I was doing bits here and there, and this year I finally get the opportunity to live out the full dream and get the pre-season going into the season so it's pretty good," Kaihea said.

"Some days are pretty long. I don't mind it, we do have our big days and the sessions are cut out pretty evenly throughout the day so we get a good rest period. In our second session we can give the full 100 per cent."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: