The Wallaby back Berrick Barnes will captain the Queensland Reds, standing in for the injured James Horwill.
The 22-year-old leads a squad with 12 new faces including All Blacks backrower Daniel Braid and ex-NRL player Mark McLinden.
After officially being announced as fill-in captain Barnes ran at training for the first time since seriously injuring his knee in the Wallabies spring tour.
He is confident of returning in the trial against Western Force at Ballymore on February 5.
Barnes will effectively skipper the Reds for half of the season with Horwill not expected back until March 21.
