That would be the last time I saw the Dragons play - the rather upsetting finals loss to the Broncos. (I'm still trying to work out how we lost that game. Supercoach Bennett was at Brisbane for 20-odd years, surely he should have known how to beat them).

From that evening I have had to sit through four-and-a-bit Dragon-free months.

But this Saturday night it all ends with the Mercury Challenge.

Yes, I know technically the Dragons drought ended last weekend when we played a trial against Parramatta, but I don't count that because I couldn't watch it on TV and I am nowhere near enough of a fanatic to sit in front of my computer listening to the commentary from some station in Perth (where they probably call it ``rugby'' anyway).

Nor is it the first game I'll have watched since that day in September. While I usually dislike rep games, I did tune into last Saturday's All-Star game - just because I'd seen no footy at all for months. But it wasn't totally enjoyable because I spent far too much time praying that Jamie Soward wouldn't get injured.

But this Saturday night, I get to see the Dragons play for the first time in what feels like an eternity. (But then every off-season feels that way to me).

Our opponent on the night is the Canterbury Bulldogs, whose fans are unlikely to ever get over losing to us in the dying seconds at Kogarah last season. If we lose a game due to a 50-50 call in the year 2060, I'm sure some Bulldogs fans will leave comments on newspaper websites saying ``that's payback for 2009''.

Anyway, I think trials are my favourite games of the season. That's because it doesn't matter if we win or lose. So I can sit there on the hill at WIN Stadium and enjoy the game rather than being preoccupied by fears that someone's going to drop the ball or miss a tackle that will cost us the game. (I'm a shocking death rider when it comes to watching the Dragons).

But most of all, trials mean the footy season proper is just weeks away. And after almost five months of waiting, that's very good news indeed.