Burrow feels he will be a "better player" next season after his shock omission from the national team for the recent Gillette Four Nations.

The four-time Grand Final winner reported in for pre-season training with Leeds this week and he admitted missing the international tournament has made him more determined to do well in 2010.

Said Burrow: "I was bitterly disappointed I didn't get picked, but it will give me a chance to have a good pre-season.

"I watched the Leeds lads and it made more determined, not to prove anything to anyone else, but to myself and the club I play for.

"I hope the extra rest will benefit me as a player and I have a really big year next year.

"It will be good to go into the World Club Challenge with two full months' training under my belt, rather than a couple of weeks."

While Rhinos' England players aren't due back at the club until the new year, Burrow is relishing being in from the start of pre-season.

"Apart from my academy days, I have never had a full pre-season," he said. "I am used to coming back for two weeks, then being back into it (competitive games).

"I am really looking forward to it, having a good weights programme and getting my fitness up to where it should be at the start of the year.

"Hopefully I'll be a better player next season from it."

The first few days of training have been devoted to fitness testing, but Burrow said it's "good to be back".

"It has been great," he said. "Everybody's working hard and it looks like we've all come back pretty healthy. After the Grand Final, you have a few days' celebrations then everyone goes their separate ways.

"You enjoy the rest, then for the last couple of weeks you're itching to get back and see everyone. You do miss seeing the lads and being part of the team environment."

Burrow hailed recruits Kyle Amor and Michael Coady for the way they have handled the step up into a full-time environment – and he insisted he is keen to get his boots back on on Boxing Day, when Rhinos take on Wakefield Trinity Wildcats.