"Once we have confidence, we can play without fear and do a lot with the ball," Banks said. "You've got to respect New Zealand and understand [Kiwi teams] are playing at a really high level at the moment.
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"But you also have to understand that they are beatable, that they do have weaknesses and that if you play well enough you can exploit those."
Speight is unlikely to be cleared to travel with the team after being forced to withdraw from the Brumbies' 45-21 win against Queensland last week.
He has been managing an ongoing knee problem, and the prospect of 10 hours of travel to Dunedin is expected to delay his 100th Super Rugby cap until April 22.
The good news is the Brumbies showed against Queensland they can fire without their best attacking weapon, scoring seven tries to get their season back on track.
It was a perfectly-timed boost before their first game of the season against an opponent from New Zealand.
Coach Dan McKellar has been attempting to reprogram the Brumbies this year to change their safety-first mentality and replace it with a fast-paced plan to attack.
Winger James Dargaville, who replaced Speight last week, said there were teething issues as players adjusted, but is confident the benefits will be long term.
The basis of the style change is set around taking opportunities and chances as soon as they're available instead of predictable play.
"Everyone has habits and have played a certain way since they were growing up," Dargaville said.
"There were some teething issues, we've seen glimpses of that sort of attack with forwards offloading and things like that. It's just about finding a bit of balance in our game.
"The back three positions are really competitive here, we all offer very different things. Dan has just told me it's a waiting game and you've got to take your opportunities."
The Brumbies haven't beaten a New Zealand side since round one two years ago, but they lost three of their six Kiwi clashes by six points or less.
"It's not like we've been going over there and having 40 points put on us," Dargaville said. "It's just a mentality thing of making sure we finish off that last 10 minutes instead of dropping off like we have in years gone by."
SUPER RUGBY ROUND NINE
Saturday: Otago Highlanders v ACT Brumbies at Forsyth Barr Stadium, 5.35pm. TV time: Live on Fox Sports.
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Chris Dutton is a sports reporter at The Canberra Times.
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