Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham has hinted Scott Fardy could make an instant return after being rested for their Super Rugby win over the Western Force.
Fardy was among the Brumbies' best performers in their narrow defeats to the Crusaders and Sharks but was left out of the side which beat the Force 25-17 in Canberra on Friday night.
Despite his strong form, Larkham made the surprising call to drop 39-Test backrower as they hunted their first victory of the season.
Larkham hinted Fardy could return next week to face NSW Waratahs in Sydney on Saturday night.
"I'm not going to say what our selection is going to be (next week), but you can put two and two together and know that Fards is a world-class player," Larkham said.
"We'll make the right decision there."
The shock selection came days after Fardy announced he would leave the club at the end of the season to join Irish giants Leinster on a two-year contract.
Larkham has consistently said Fardy's omission was about managing the 32-year-old's workload during the season.
"The tactic was to rest Fards so he's nice and fresh this week," Larkham said.
"Fards is a world-class player, we're just being smart with how we're managing him.
"The good thing is we got through the game, Fards is rested up and we've got an eight-day turnaround for the next game."
The Brumbies clash with the Waratahs comes as the Australian conference emerges as a tight tussle in the early stages of the season.
The man who replaced Fardy, Ben Hyne, impressed his coach on a five-day turnaround after playing for the second-tier Runners.
"I was pretty happy with Hyney's game," Larkham said.
"That's effectively his first Super Rugby game. He came on last year but came off after the first four minutes."
But with Fardy set to return, Hyne's place in the Brumbies starting 15 could be short-lived as the side looks to build momentum after their first win of the year.
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