The club had two sides, Rhinos Gold and Rhinos Black, take part in the GrainCorp Cup North Division last year but the Central West Rugby Union (CWRU) made the decision to split the two sides into the North and South Divisions for this season.

Burns said having one side in each division as well as a women's side would be too much for the club to handle.

The CWRU made the decision earlier this year and Burns had attempted to organise a meeting with officials to put forward the Rhinos case and try and get both sides back into the North Division.

After receiving a reply from the CWRU Burns admitted it was unlikely that would be the case, leaving the Rhinos with one men's team and their women's side.

"We've got to sit down as a club now and make a decision but unfortunately I can't see us having the support staff or players to cover three competitions," he said.

"Not at this stage (will we field two sides), which is very disappointing because potentially there's 20 to 25 players who won't get to play a game and that goes against what we've always tried to do."

CWRU rules state the GrainCorp Cup is a one-team competition and with the Rhinos currently not having the facilities to return to the premier Blowes Clothing Cup in the near future, the decision was made to split the two sides.

The chance to strengthen the South Division was also a part of the decision.

The South Division is currently contested by teams from Condobolin, Canowindra, Molong, Blayney, Grenfell, Orange and West Wyalong and Burns said the further distances to travel, compared with the likes of Geurie, Wellington and Yeoval in the North Division, was one of many challenges facing the Rhinos.

"The travel aspect is one, having enough dedicated players each week is a big problem," he said.

"That Rhinos Black side last season was pretty much a second grade side, it was for guys who couldn't train all the time or who played league and just wanted to play a bit of rugby.

"To possibly force a side to travel to Blayney in the middle of winter is a bit unrealistic.

"It would stretch resources too, player management and first aid, having someone at the table each week and providing a linesman, we'd be stretched too thin and player care would become an issue because sometimes they would have to play with no strapper."

At different times last year Burns would attend a women's match at Bathurst during the day as part of the support staff and then race home to be with the Rhinos that night at Dubbo or another local town but he said that kind of dedication would be impossible if a Rhinos team was playing at Condobolin or West Wyalong.

While he admitted he could understand the CWRU's decision, Burns said it was disappointing the association, which according to Burns had floated the idea of the GrainCorp Cup possibly becoming a two-team competition someday in the future, was hurting the chance for the game to grow by not letting the Rhinos stay in the North Division and continue their player development.

Burns described the current situation as "heart-breaking" but said there was some other positive news for the club.

The women's side, which won the central west title last season, was again looking strong while this season for the first time the Rhinos are looking to nominate junior sides.

The Rhinos look set to enter teams in the under-7s, under-9s, under-15s and under-17s and Burns said any interested youngsters are more than welcome to join.