Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham will start his final year in the job with new faces and a rookie captain as he targets his championship goal.

Larkham won two Super Rugby titles when he was a player in the Brumbies' golden era, but now his challenge is throwing together an unpredictable squad for one last crack at glory as a coach.

Larkham will finish his Brumbies coaching tenure at the end of the season after deciding to move into a full-time Wallabies assistant role until 2019.

He revealed he could make a Super Rugby coaching return in the future, but said his only focus was ushering in a new generation in Canberra.

The Brumbies boasted an all-star roster last season. But 12 months later their Super Rugby squad has 14 new faces in a major overhaul.

Most teams dread the word 'rebuilding' because it implies lean results on the field.

But Larkham is embracing the change, even if he's doing it without some of Australian rugby's biggest names on his roster.

Larkham pointed to the Brumbies' early years when a group of rejects from Queensland and NSW moved to Canberra and built Australia's most successful franchise.

"Since the Brumbies started, we've talked about guys coming to Canberra for an opportunity," Larkham said.

"If you haven't got a shot at another team or you've come through the ranks in Canberra, you've got a point to prove.

"It's a really good gel of personalities that we've got at the moment, guys who want that chance down here and want to prove themselves.

"That can be a really powerful thing for a team because everyone wants it that little bit more."

Players including Stephen Moore, David Pocock, Matt Toomua and Joe Tomane have left the Brumbies since the end of last year.

Christian Lealiifano will step into a coaching role after going into remission and it is hoped he will be able to train and travel with the team at different times during the season.

Star scrumhalf Tomas Cubelli will miss at least 13 of the Brumbies' 15 games this year as he recovers from knee surgery and winger Lausii Taliauli has already been ruled out for the entire season.

It's a changing of the guard that new skipper Sam Carter says must not be used as an excuse for poor performances.

One-Test Wallaby Kyle Godwin will replace Toomua. Veteran Josh Mann-Rea will step into Moore's hooker duties. Canberra junior Joe Powell will get an opportunity to replace Cubelli.

"I guess even we don't know how it's going to go at this stage, we won't know until we get out there and start playing," Carter said.

"I think back in 2012 we only had three Wallabies in our entire squad and we turned a lot of heads that season.

"Hopefully it's the same this year. Nothing has changed as far as we are concerned, we want to do well and we back the players we've got.

"I think it is good to fly under the radar a little bit. There was a fair bit pressure on us last year because of the team we had and a few things off the field.

"This year we don't have that pressure going on. We're just focused on being the best team we can be."

Carter has missed just a handful of games since making his debut in 2011, but will lean on co-captain Lealiifano for advice to help him settle into his first major leadership job since he was a schoolboy.

Lealiifano will be one of Larkham's assistants and it is hoped he will be able to start training six months after his bone-marrow transplant.

"You've got to start somewhere and Christian is definitely still our leader, but it's a massive honour for me to be in this position," Carter said.

Larkham has made the finals every season he has been the Brumbies' head coach. But he has always fallen at the hurdles before his championship dream.

If he doesn't win the Super Rugby title this year, will he return in the future after helping the Wallabies to the 2019 World Cup?

"I'm not thinking about any of that at this stage, we have to target round one this year," Larkham said.

"There will be some sorrow for me at the end of the year. I haven't thought about the future past the World Cup, but coming back to Super Rugby is always a possibility."