The Rhinos hit the road for the second time in as many weeks to face the Wombats on their home turf and it was the hosts who came away with bragging rights after their 16-10 victory over Dubbo.

Rhinos coach Doug Sandry was pleased with how his side handled the competition leaders and although he wanted a win, the result was still a positive one in his eyes.

"It was a huge performance, we went over there expecting to win and I thought if a few things went our way we should've won," he said.

"We had a disallowed try in the first half for a marginal offside but I don't think it was anyway, that's another story.

"I thought it was a fair try and we thought in the second half we don't believe they grounded the ball over the line so maybe a couple of things didn't go our way.

"The big thing for us was they had possession for maybe 60 to 70 per cent of the game and our defence was incredible.

"They had a howling wind behind them in the first half and all they could come up with was three penalty goals. That tells you how good our defence was."

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The win for Mudgee now means they have wrapped up the minor premiership and will host a home major semi-final, with the Rhinos a chance to meet them again in a few weeks time.

Sandry has spoken all season about the fact he wants the Rhinos to peak at the right time and the coach is confident there are still a few things his side can improve.

"We've still got some work to do on our scrum, I thought the Mudgee scrum was absolutely fantastic," he said.

"They were dominant so we've got a bit of work to do there but it was bloody close.

"The match could've went, either way, to be honest, but full credit to Mudgee, they worked what they needed to do to win the game and they did it."

The Rhinos now sit second equal on points with Parkes but ahead of percentage and Sandry is hoping his side can get another crack at Mudgee in a few weeks.

"The great thing we got out of the game was that we picked up a bonus point which keeps us in second place on for and against," he said.

"So if results go our way this weekend and we do the right thing by playing the rugby we need to play then we can go back over there.

"Our focus now is on Narromine, we need to front up and put on a good performance.

"We are undefeated at home this year and we want to keep it that way."

Prior to the match, Sandry spoke about the impact a returning trio of players would have on his team and the Rhinos mentor said a pair of players were outstanding on Saturday.

"I reckon I had 20 blokes out there who were outstanding but to have Lachie O'Malley and Joe Raikabula back made an absolute mountain of a difference," he said.

"The work those two get through in a game is incredible, Lachie has gone to a new level this year.

"He is a player who has a lot of ability, the future is whatever he wants it to be.

"Joe was brilliant, his ball-running and his work around the ground, everything was great."

Without Kaiden Hill, Sandry opted to change a few things in his backline, something he believes worked quite well.

"We had a couple of changes in the backline, Dale Smith went to 10 (fly-half) and Nash (Forgione) went back to fullback," he said.

"I thought Dale was great and Nash stopped two or three tries defensively, his kicking game was great."

The Rhinos' two tries came via prop Brett Austin and winger Ava Sanga, with Sandry having nothing but praise for the try-scoring feats of his front rower.

"Brett Austin, the old bloke scored an incredible try in the first half," he said.

"He took the ball out the back out a line out, threw a few dummies and carried about 15 of them over the line.

"All in all, it was a great performance, as I said earlier we expected to win and nearly got the chocolates.

"Now our focus changes to Narromine."

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