Cron, who was a Waratahs assistant before three years coaching in Japan, opted for Hegarty ahead of Hamish Stewart who will slot in at inside centre.

Last year’s No.1 playmaker Reesjan Pasitoa will miss the majority of the season with a knee injury, and Cron was impressed by Hegarty’s brief cameo in last week’s trial game loss to Fijian Drua.

“Bryce is a conductor, so what that means is his voice is very dominant,” Cron said.

“He’s very good at commanding what’s happening during games and the boys will hear it.

“We know Hamish can play 12 and we’ve given him opportunities to play 10 over the last few weeks because he’s going to end up there for us, and he needs to be able to play both.

“So I think you’ll see both of those boys playing 10 for us throughout the year.”

The Rebels have a few new faces, most notably Italy winger Monte Ioane.

The Force have nine new players in the run-on side, among them former Brumbies hooker Folau Fainga’a who will butt heads with Rebels recruit, ex-Reds rake Alex Mafi.

New Wallabies coach Eddie Jones will keep a close watch on their duel with both hoping to force their way into World Cup consideration.

AAP