ACT Brumbies hopeful of Allan Alaalatoa return for Super Rugby semi-final against Chiefs

Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham might be reaching for his nearest set of rosary beads before he names his squad on Thursday ahead of a must-win semi-final against the Chiefs in Hamilton on Saturday.

Alaalatoa has been sidelined with a calf injury that some feared would leave him racing the clock to be fit for the Wallabies' first Test of the year, but there is hope within Brumbies headquarters he could be cleared to return for a trip across the Tasman.

A final decision on Alaalatoa's fitness is set to be made on Thursday morning, amid concern about potentially reaggravating the injury.

Meanwhile, Larkham says winger Corey Toole is "tracking nicely" as he eyes a return from an ankle injury, while the race to the No. 10 jersey between Jack Debreczini and Noah Lolesio looms as another point of intrigue.

MORE SPORT

"We've had good continuity all year with both 10s starting and coming off the bench. It'll be no different this weekend with our nines and 10s," Larkham said.

"We're just looking for our best combination to start the game, and our best combination to finish the game. I thought [Debreczini] was good on the weekend, he has been playing well all year.

"Likewise with Noah, we've seen improvement in both of their games throughout the year. It's good to see both of them are peaking at the most important part of the season."

The Brumbies will hold one final training session on home soil before flying to New Zealand, with the club calling on fans to show their support at Brumbies headquarters from midday on Thursday.

"We've opened up the session tomorrow. I'm sure there is going to be quite a few people down there showing their support," Larkham said.

"We certainly appreciate everything our supporters have thrown at us this year. If you look at the way the game ended on the weekend, we had six minutes there on our line. The amount of noise the crowd made certainly lifted the boys and ultimately allowed us to be in the position we're in at the moment.

"We're up to Sydney on the bus straight after training and we arrive into Auckland about midnight, have a good sleep at the airport hotel and make our way to Hamilton on Friday, with the view that will give us the best prep."

The Brumbies are looking to become the first Australian team to win a Super Rugby finals match from 14 attempts in New Zealand.

Three times they have fallen at the final hurdle across the Tasman. They lost the 1997 decider in Auckland, the 2002 edition against the Crusaders in Christchurch, and the 2013 final against the Chiefs in Hamilton.

They fell one game short of the final on three more occasions, losing semi-finals in New Zealand in 2003, 2015 and 2022.

Whether history counts for anything on Saturday night depends on who you speak to.

If it matters, perhaps the Brumbies can take some confidence in knowing they have beaten the Chiefs in New Zealand twice from their last six attempts. The ledger is almost even in Hamilton, where the Chiefs hold a 6-5 record over Australia's most successful Super Rugby club.

"We've had an opportunity to play these guys a couple of rounds ago, and it was an incredibly physical contest. It was a game that slipped away from us pretty early in the piece," Larkham said.

"We'll take our learnings out of that game and we'll make sure our individual prep and the team prep is where it needs to be. We're certainly not looking at the occasion or any past history.

"We have a plan to play against the Chiefs, we just want to make sure we're in the best position to execute that."

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.