Vikings Irae Simone has six games to impress for Brumbies starting gig

Canberra Vikings centre Irae Simone has six weeks left in the National Rugby Championship to stake his claim for the vacant ACT Brumbies No. 12 jersey.

Simone earned 10 caps in two seasons at the NSW Waratahs but was stuck behind Kurtley Beale, so he moved to Canberra last month in search of more Super Rugby minutes.

Irae Simone playing against the Canberra Vikings. This week he'll swap jerseys and face his former side the Sydney Rays.

Irae Simone playing against the Canberra Vikings. This week he’ll swap jerseys and face his former side the Sydney Rays.

That journey began off the Vikings' bench last week but Simone will likely start against his former club the Sydney Rays this week, with Wharenui Hawera out with concussion.

Inside centre is the most up for grabs spot at the Brumbies next season after Kyle Godwin left for Irish club Connacht and Andrew Smith retired.

The Brumbies are expected to sign another inside back but as it stands Simone is battling Jordan Jackson-Hope, who will replace Hawera at flyhalf this week, for a starting spot.

"The Brumbies gave me an opportunity and I’m here to take it," Simone said.

"I’ve had my experience at the Tahs and I enjoyed that but being down here is definitely refreshing, not just for myself but for my little family.

"It's exciting and I’m looking forward to it, there's a lot of new things and a lot of learning but I’m pretty confident that whatever is in front of me I’ll take it head on.

"I'm not looking too far ahead at the Brumbies at the moment, all I'm worried about now is the Sydney Rays and just trying to make the starting team.

"With Futz [Hawera] getting knocked out last week it increases my chances hopefully. Not thinking Brumbies yet but when it comes I’ll start working hard and see how I go."

Canberra lost its season opener and grand final rematch against Queensland Country but Simone is confident they can bounce back against his old team.

The 23-year-old said he'll be revealing secrets about his former teammates but emphasised an improved defence is what will get the win this week.

"We were trying to wrestle them up too high last week.  We don't have to wrestle them up front, we can also play smart and play around them," Simone said.

"That’s our main focus this week, we still saw a lot of good things happen on the weekend that we can take forward and give our boys a bit of confidence.

"There’s a lot of good fellas in that Rays team but I have full confidence in our boys to get the job done."

Vikings lock Darcy Swain wasn't phased by the need to win due the shortened seven-week season and said if they can fix their goal-line defence the result would take care of itself.

"It’s early days and we’ve got a young team so we’re not worried. Fourth last year won half their games so it’s a really open comp. We're not worried, we know it will come," Swain said.

"We’ve got a huge amount of talent in the younger guys as well as the older guys and guys coming from interstate who really add something, so I really think we can win it all.

"It’s just goal-line defence and physicality and body contact that let us down [last week], so we’ll put in the work tonight and I think we’ll probably see them [Queensland] in the finals."

NATIONAL RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 2

Saturday: Sydney Rays v Canberra Vikings at Concord Oval, 3pm.

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