The former test all-rounder will be travelling to New Zealand with his Sydney Thunder teammates to begin pre-season training.

With the Big Bash league only a few weeks away, McDonald said the timing was unfortunate.

“It isn't the best timing, sadly,” he said.

“It was good to get back to Albury and play with the Bullets and help them out with a few things.

“It’ll be a big moment for a few of those guys, stepping onto the SCG for the first time, so it’s a bit of a shame to miss that.

“The pre-season will be pretty short, but unfortunately it's just one of those things you have to do.”

The absence of McDonald's star power comes as a blow, Bullets coach Robbie Jackson said the team was still riding high.

“It was always going to be a bit touch and go,” he said.

“But that's the nature of the beast with that calibre of player at the end of the day.

“Those players are in high demand and we knew that.”

Jackson remained confident that the Bullets line-up had the goods to contend with the best the burgeoning competition has to offer.

“Having Andrew in the side was like icing on the cake,” the coach said.

“I think he took a great deal more from it than he was expecting to.

“Having him out on the field was like having a second coach.

“The experience he brought to the table was extremely valuable for the whole team, particularly in terms of field placements and understanding the ebbs and flows of T20 cricket.

“That being said, we’ve still got a very nice quad to choose from.”

Marquee player Cade Brown will continue to provide some welcome experience to the side, Jackson said.

“The team has really been able to feed of the experience that Cade has brought with him,” he said.

“I think he’s had a very similar experience to Andrew in that respect, he’s enjoyed it a great deal more than he thought he might have.” 

Though the outfield at the SCG was the subject of some criticism during the domestic competitions earlier this season, Jackson was expecting little short of a belter on the weekend.

“I’ve got no doubt that the outfield will be pretty quick,” he said.

“You’d expect a quality surface at the SCG and I’m confident that they’ll deliver.

“We’ll need upwards of 200 runs if we want to be competitive.

“Getting the amount of runs we did against Wagga a couple of weeks ago was a big confidence boost for the guys.

“We’ve made some good improvements along the way.” 

The Bullets will face the Orana Outlaws at two o’clock on Sunday afternoon, with the winner to progress to the grand final.