The carrot of a Wallabies berth is motivating Brumbies winger Tom Wright as Super Rugby AU but the speedster is acutely aware he'll have competition on his hands to hang on to his starting spot in Super Rugby AU.
Wright had a scintillating start to the 2020 season, scoring four tries in five games, that was so impressive it catapulted him into the players of national interest group.
The 22-year-old said he was surprised that he was on the list to receive a call from Wallabies coach Dave Rennie after what has been his first season of regular Super Rugby starts.
"It was really, really exciting, absolutely...was something that was a little bit of a shock at the time, just woke up one morning and there it was," he said.
"It was something that was at the top of the wish list in terms of post-Super Rugby, in terms of our locker room it would be at the top of everyone's goals list.
"That's the pinnacle of our sport in this country, which is something that everyone obviously strives to, and we obviously spoke about there being a new breed with himself and bringing in new staff with him.
"This was sort of in the time of the pandemic starting to roll in so there was a lot of uncertainty around competition structures, when we were going to play, what sort of Test matches there will be going forward, not that we went into any detail about that, but just it was a very general conversation.
"He made it clear he was getting in touch with a number of guys just wanting us as players to keep ourselves (as fit) as we can, keeping up our conditioning and our core skills because, he was just as unsure as we were in terms of coming back into the competition and when that was going to be or what that might have even looked like."
The realisation that his form could help him push his case for a Wallabies spot will prove major motivation for Wright as Super Rugby AU kicks off, with Wallabies trials effectively every week in the form of Australian derbies.
"It's top of the goals," he said.
"Dangling the carrot, as you said, that's the expression that gets thrown around.
"It'll just literally come down to now playing, versing your opposite number, trying to impress.
"I think winning games is how teams get picked a lot of the time. Not too many teams, players come out of too many teams where teams aren't winning.
"Success comes on the back of everyone playing well and then obviously individual accolades come on the back of that. July 4, we'll see how we go.
"Coming up against the Rebels - John Eales Medallist Marika Koroibete there's no better person to come up against.
"There's the standard so see how we go on July 4 and look forward to it."
Before even thinking about the opponents he might have to better to push for a Test spot, though, Wright knows he will have a fight on his hands
Wright and Solomone Kata have been the regular starters for the Brumbies but Andy Muirhead has also proven his quality in recent seasons and will be pushing for a return to the XV.
"Three doesn't go into two, you do the math," Wright said.
"Obviously there's a jostle for positions there and it'll be really exciting to see how, we've still got a number of weeks to go, so I don't think the team's been picked by any means yet so we'll see - July 4 obviously, who'll be running out.
"We're all just happy for each other as we are in ourselves so we'll push each other and keep each other accountable."
The Brumbies take on the Rebels on Saturday July 4 at GIO Stadium, kicking off at 7:15pm AEST, LIVE on Foxtel, Foxtel Now and Kayo Sports. Subscribe to Kayo here.
