He spent the last two seasons as a part of the Blues wider training squad but the pull of family and a chance to play for the Taniwha has drawn him home.
"I've always wanted to pull on the Cambridge blue jumper at this level so it means everything to me and it's good to be a part of such a young side," he said.
The newness of the line-up has made it a very easy transition into the squad for Waa and he said there were familiar faces from his age-group days and a few more from his Auckland experience.
Starting with such a young squad has given new captain Cam Eyre and his senior players plenty of work to do in the pre-season, but against Manawatu he hopes they can exploit their talent to deliver a confidence-building win.
"The game has changed a lot with more young players stepping up, so for me it is all about channelling their enthusiasm and pointing them in the right direction and also about creating confidence in themselves," he said.
Eyre is back playing for the Taniwha after two seasons overseas and is now in charge of an almost completely changed team since he last played.
"It makes my job harder, I guess, but these guys have such amazing raw talent and skills that they may just shock a few of the older heads that they come up against," he said.
The Taniwha skipper is expecting a tough match against Manawatu.
"They play a pretty basic game and take it straight up the middle so we're expecting to have to work hard on defence and soak up some pressure and then try and take them apart when we get the chance," he said.
Prop Matt Talaese, lock Shane Neville, second-five eighth Troy Gilbert and winger Filipo Nakosi are the debutants in the run-on team, while Waa, hooker Jordan Olsen, lock Miracle Tulua Taito, loosie Kara Prior and halfback Kurt Davies will make their debuts from the bench.
