Brumbies duo Toua and Jarrad Butler declared their hopes of signing deals to extend their stay in Canberra after the ACT club avoided the axe earlier this week.

The Brumbies have more than 20 players whose contracts end when the season finishes and there will be a mad rush to keep the squad together.

One Australian team will be cut from Super Rugby in the coming weeks with the ARU deciding whether to jettison the Western Force or the Melbourne Rebels.

The ARU will re-home players with existing contracts from the cut franchise to one of the remaining four teams while the rest will likely have to force their way into a squad.

The ARU asked clubs to postpone talks with non-Wallabies players until after the Super Rugby debacle was sorted out.

The Brumbies have a long list of players looking for new contracts, including Wallabies outside centre Tevita Kuridrani, Toua, Butler, and Tomas Cubelli.

"Maybe there was a bit of relief the Brumbies survived the axe, but we've got friends at the Rebels and the Force so we're worried for our guys over there," Toua said.

"Maybe it's been handled poorly, I just hope all of my mates get sorted out. You always want that security of having a job and with a team going, there's going to be some guys on the market.

"So more competition which is healthy for Australian rugby, but scary at the same time. So you wanted it sorted quickly.

"The culture at the Brumbies has always been strong, but this group of guys is pretty special. We hope the core can stay together and move forward in the next few years."

The Brumbies are on the verge of appointing a new coach to replace Stephen Larkham at the end of the year, with the short-list down to the final two applicants.

Larkham will start player negotiations until his successor is announced and the Brumbies will also have to weigh up which players from the Force or the Rebels would fit into the club.

The Force boast Wallabies Dane Haylett-Petty and Ben McCalman - who both play in Toua and Butler's respective positions - while the Rebels have some of the most exciting outside backs in the competition.

Butler played his first game of the season last weekend, scoring a try in his 50th cap celebration.

The 25-year-old is regarded as one of the hardest workers at the Brumbies and could be thrust into the starting XV this week after Jordan Smiler suffered a hamstring injury in a 43-10 win against Queensland.

The Brumbies have a handful of players who have contracts until 2018 or 2019, including Rory Arnold, David Pocock, Scott Sio, Allan Alaalatoa, Henry Speight and Sam Carter.

But Butler said the negotiation of new deals wouldn't become a distraction for Brumbies players as they aim to topple the under-fire Rebels at AAMI Park on Saturday.

"When the Rebels are on, they're such a tough team to play so we know we've got a massive task on our hands," Butler said.

"They'll be motivated to win regardless but I'm sure they'll want to prove some people wrong and play well.

"Everyone has been pretty anxious ... It's been a frustrating couple of months but hopefully now we can start getting a bit more clarity.

"There's still so much to sort out ... we just want to be playing well and Australian rugby to be going well. I love being in Canberra and I love playing for the Brumbies."

SUPER RUGBY EIGHT

Saturday: Melbourne Rebels v ACT Brumbies at AAMI Park, Melbourne, 7.45pm. TV time: Live on Fox Sports 1.