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No rest for battered Brumbies

Sydney - Brumbies forwards coach Laurie Fisher has ruled out making ''holus-bolus'' changes to rest players for Friday's game against Super Rugby newcomers Southern Kings at Canberra Stadium.

Fisher said numerous players were carrying niggles after the first seven rounds.

He said coach Jake White would continue to rotate players to ensure the team was as close to 100 percent fit as possible.

But that didn't mean they would take the lowly Kings, who are second bottom on the ladder with just one win, lightly.

''You've got to get the balance right,'' Fisher said on Monday.

''I don't think you can show disrespect to any side, I think you've got to respect [the Kings].

''You look at their performance against the Hurricanes on the weekend, they were in that game for a long time, [and] they've beaten the Force.

''We need to be selecting a side that we think will win the game.

''We can't back players out of this game holus bolus. They'll challenge us physically and we need to make sure we're up for it.''

Instead, White will continue to tinker with the line-up in a horses-for-courses approach.

Especially given a few guys are carrying knocks and bruises.

Fisher was unsure whether fullback Jesse Mogg would be available for selection after missing the last two games through a shoulder injury he sustained in South Africa.

''A lot of guys are a bit bruised and battered through the first few weeks,'' Fisher said. ''Without naming anyone, I think a lot of guys have played a lot of football - Ben Mowen, Peter Kimlin, Steve Moore, they've all played a lot of football, [as well as] Matt Toomua, Christian Lealiifano.

''It's important we look at them and what state of repair we're in and look at the games that are coming up and make decisions on that basis.''

After the Kings game, the Brumbies are away to the winless Highlanders and then the Reds - two crucial games which could define the Brumbies' season.


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