The Maitland Pickers had their first run at the new sportsground on Tuesday night, with the Kurri Kurri Bulldogs and Cessnock Goannas also kicking off their training programs on Tuesday.

Among the new faces was former NRL bad boy Paul Carter at Cessnock.

Pickers coach Luke Dorn said it was a light session on Tuesday to see where players were at in their own training programs and to introduce them to the new facility.

“The new sportsground is a fantastic facility. We trained on the side ground and it was in excellent condition,” Dorn said.

“We will stay off the main ground until closer to the season, but we have to congratulate the council on a great job.”

The Pickers, Bulldogs and Goannas are training on Tuesday and Thursday nights, with league tag teams starting on Friday.