And while Smith has only signed an initial 12-week contract during the Japanese off season, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him stay on until the end of the Super XV campaign and a clash with the Lions on June 18.

"George's record and ability to win games is outstanding," said Brumbies boss Jake White.

"The guy has won Super Rugby Championships, he's won big games for the Wallabies, and he's played in a Rugby World Cup final, so I want him to bring that winning culture back here to the Brumbies.

"This year we've been trying to bring back some of the old attitudes and ways of thinking that made the Brumbies such a success in the early days."

Smith has already tasted glory against the Lions after starting all three Tests as the Wallabies won the series 2-1 back in 2001 and, although he won't be available for international selection, he'll now be hoping for another success at provincial level in Canberra.

With a heart complaint ruling fellow backrower Ita Vaea out for the entire season, the Brumbies had been searching for a quality replacement and have now turned to one of the stars of their last title-winning campaign in 2004.

Brumbies assistant coach Stephen Larkham, a former teammate of Smith's for both club and country, has attempted to play down any thoughts of the 110-Test veteran walking straight back into the starting line up but, given his past achievements and his recent form for Suntory, you certainly wouldn't put it past him.

''With Ita I guess we need to fill another spot and George could potentially do that for us on a short-term contract," added Larkham.

''There's a lot of competition for the backrow positions at the moment and the guys have performed well so far this year.

''The way I envisage George coming in is he's more of a back-up and a bit of stability for the guys... I don't see George taking the spot of anyone in the team at the moment.''

Brumbies skipper Ben Mowen and new signing David Pocock see things a little differently to Larkham, though, with the backrow pair expecting to be pushed hard for a starting sport by the 32-year-old.

"Absolutely (he'll keep me on my toes) and that's what you want," said Pocock.

"It's outstanding... everyone would want to play alongside George, he's a great guy to have around.

"Apart from the on-field stuff, off-field just having him around, he's such a calming influence on the group and guys just generally love hanging out with him."

''If you had a guy like that in the squad I'd say by his own standards he'd push his way into your team somehow, whether he starts there or not's irrelevant,'' added Mowen.

''At some stage of the year he'd be in the side without a doubt. From all reports his quality hasn't dropped off at all.

''I think the way that he played through his 110 Tests he was super consistent so I can't imagine that's a part of his game that's dropped off.''