They can do it in the form of the Group 10 player of the year award.

While the same COVID-19 situation which forced the season to be abandoned meant the usual awards evening did not proceed as scheduled either, Group 10 chairman Linore Zamparini has revealed the best players will still have their efforts recognised.

The plan is to combine the awards presentation with the 2022 season launch in February.

"December is probably not the time for it, everyone is probably a bit busy, so we thought we'd do the double and go with the presentation and season launch," Zamparini said.

"We've got the player of the year, the highest point scorer, the rookie of the year and that's all done during the regular season, semi-finals don't come into that.

"It was a shame we didn't get the finals series done, but it is what it is I guess."

While both Panthers and the Saints have fielded players of immense talent in their squads each season, it has been some time since a player from either club has managed to claim the top individual award for premier league.

The last time a Saint was named Group 10 premier league player of the year was in 2015 when hooker Benjamin John topped the count, finishing one vote ahead of Bathurst native and Orange CYMS enforcer Simon Osborne.

The following season Panther Jeremy Gordon was named player of the year, nudging out Mudgee's Jack Afamasaga and CYMS' Ben McAlpine by a point.

Gordon was the first Panther to claim the honour since 2006 when fullback Dan Stuart got the nod.

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While both Pat's and Panthers have claimed player of the year honours in under 18s, first division and league tag since then, the closest any Bathurst player has come since to the premier league award was in 2017 when Panther Brent Seager finished two points behind CYMS prop Chris Bamford in the count.

The player of the year count could be just as close for 2021, with Zamparini praising the quality of the competition amidst the challenges the COVID-19 situation presented.

CYMS finished as minor premiers, nudging out Panthers by just two points.

"It was a pretty good season, no doubt. CYMS and Panthers were good, Mudgee were strong all the way through, Pat's had a little bit of a slow start but they were coming home pretty well at the end," he said.

"It was hard because we had no Workies due to the COVID situation, so teams might have had a bye then missed out because they were due to play Workies the next week, so that was a three-week turnaround between games, it made it pretty tough.

"It certainly was tough, at least year year it didn't take off, we played the knockout and that was it, but this year it was a bit of stop-start. It wasn't good because everyone just loses their match fitness."

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