This season was meant to be a special occasion for Bathurst-born playmaker Harry Siejka.
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The 28-year-old had signed with Mudgee Dragons for the 2020 Group 10 premier league season, the former Bathurst Panthers junior returning to his home region for the first time since joining the Penrith Panthers as a 14-year-old in 2006.
Siejka admitted he's disappointed that he won't get a chance to play in Group 10 this year.
"It's an awkward thing that's happening. Everyone is in the same boat," he said.
"I was really looking forward to playing and I got one game in the Bathurst Knockout, but I was unfit, so I wouldn't really call it a good game.
"I started to get a taste of it again and then all the COVID stuff happened."
Siejka said there was a good mood at the Mudgee camp in the off-season.
"A couple of guys had left but Clay Priest had come down and I came down," he said.
"I think there was a lot of hunger to get back to the grand final and win it.
"I didn't spend too much time there, because I moved in a bit late, but you can tell the boys were keen to get back around it and win one.
"It's disappointing not to play and I think we've got a good enough squad to do a job in Group 10.
"We're still training, and a few catch up and keep fit, just in case anything does happen we'd be ready to go."
While Group 10 won't be played this year, Siejka is keen to play some sort of rugby league in 2020.
"You'd be better of joining with what teams could field a team and combine it with Group 11," he said.
"It's not too far to travel and if you could get eight to nine teams there's a sort of round robin and it's be similar with what the NSWRL do with Harold Matthews and SG Ball competitions."