Veteran ex-Wallabies lock Justin Harrison has been dropped to the bench as the Brumbies look to rebound from their heavy defeat by Super 14 champions the Bulls.

Ben Hand reclaims the starting lock spot he held last season in the only change to the Brumbies' starting team for the clash with the Stormers in Cape Town on Friday (early Saturday AEDT).

Touted as a title chance, the Brumbies got a harsh lesson in Pretoria as the weekend as the Bulls piled on 30 successive points in the second half to win 50-32.

They will face what appears a much-improved Stormers side in 2010 with Springboks flier Bryan Habana an added major threat after switching from the Bulls in the off-season.

Brumbies coach Andy Friend admitted his team received a wake up call from the Bulls.

"Last week was a valuable eye opener for us in that we understand if you play well for only 50 minutes you won't get you the result," Friend said.

"In saying that, I was pleased with how we did front up in that first half and if we can string an 80-minute performance like that together it'll stand us in good stead.

"One thing we do need to improve is our discipline.

"We've conceded 15 and 21 points respectively in penalty goals over the past two weeks, so well be doing what we can to ensure we stay on the right side of those 50-50 decisions.

"There's no doubt Friday's game is a key one for us. If we can leave Perth and South Africa with two wins from the first three weeks - and seven of our next nine matches at home, it has the potential to set you up for a successful season."

Brumbies: Adam Ashley-Cooper, Pat McCabe, Stirling Mortlock, Christian Lealiifano, Francis Fainifo, Matt Giteau, Josh Valentine, George Smith, Rocky Elsom, Mark Chisholm, Ben Hand, Salesi Maafu, Stephen Moore, Ben Alexander. Res: Huia Edmonds, Guy Shepherdson, Justin Harrison, Mitchell Chapman, Patrick Phibbs, Matt Toomua, Tyrone Smith.

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