He may be missing pulling on the jersey but Mittagong Lions captain Adam Jeffrey hasn't been twiddling his thumbs on the sidelines.
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The Lions have been out of action since June due to Covid-19 restrictions shutting down the Macarthur-based Group 6 competition.
With even training temporarily suspended you could forgive the back rower for kicking back a little but it's been far from a holiday.
Working as a delivery driver for Harvey Norman in Moss Vale, Jeffrey has been kept busy by online orders skyrocketing since restrictions were announced.
"We haven't been able to train so we've all been doing our own stuff," he told the Southern Highland News.
"I'm really busy with work because people are at home and know exactly what they want so lots of deliveries to keep me busy."
It's just as well the 27-year old, who is in his first year as captain, is keeping fit with the end of the season likely to be condensed.
The Lions sit in fourth position and are well placed to secure a finals spot but Jeffrey is pushing his side on as they chase their first title since 1995.
"We have lots of improvement in us," he said.
"It's been good to have those big results but there have been a couple of games where we should have won so just building that consistency [is key].
"It's looking like it may even just be one game and straight into finals so we need to be ready to get stuck in. The team that just rips in will be best placed I think so we need to be switched on for that."
The Lions have been bolstered by some big name recruits in the off-season with former NRL stars Bryson Goodwin, James Grehan and Jeremy Lattimore joining after a winless, albeit curtailed, 2020 campaign.
Jeffrey said the added professionalism mixed with experience gained by several young players last year was pushing the side to new heights.
"It's been good, much better than last year," he explained.
"It wasn't fun losing all those games but it exposed a lot of the boys to first grade footy and what it's all about.
"The NRL boys have really raised the standard. We would muck around a bit last year and it's important to do that sometimes but they always know when to step in and remind the boys to focus.
"We definitely back ourselves to go all the way."
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