Damian Cupido signs with RFL club Mangoplah-Cookardinia United-Eastlakes

Cupido had launched himself into a gruelling pre-season in preparation for a return to the Ovens and Murray after a decade away.

However, his stint with Corowa-Rutherglen was derailed last week when the O and M cancelled its senior competitions due to COVID-19 concerns.

At an age when many players are easing off a tortuous fitness campaign, the 38-year-old was desperate to make an impact.

"I didn't want to come back as fat as a pig (in the O and M)," Cupido said.

"I actually made the effort to get up to Corowa a fair bit and train throughout the pre-season.

"Getting off my backside (was partly how I lost the weight) and actually running for a change, doing a fair bit of work and watching what I eat, I've been around long enough to know how to lose weight."

Cupido is now into his third decade of senior football after playing 53 games for Brisbane and Essendon from 2000-2005.

One of the great characters of the game, the classy forward passed 1000 goals in his career playing at Henty in 2018 and has kicked 100 goals in a season multiple times.

Cupido is unique in that he's combined football and cricket every year for almost 30 years, a tough task for any sportsperson.

"Even though I've enjoyed the off-season, there's a competitive fire that burns and just wants to play," he said.

"I have just started really missing it the last few weeks, I've got to the end of my, 'OK, you've had your time off and get into it now'."

Cupido played with Goannas' coach Jeremy Rowe at West Adelaide.

"We would certainly never bring anyone in with an expectation they would destroy the comp and certainly coming in and playing the role within the team is all we're chasing," Rowe said.

"Damian fills a specific need for us, we've probably lacked a noted goal-scorer and he's going to bring that forward craft to the table, but also the great thing about Damian is towards the back end of his career, he's certainly taken pride in putting time into younger players."

Cupido certainly made an impression playing interleague for the Hume Football League during his two-year stint at Henty, travelling long distances just to attend training.

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The RFL season will comprise a nine-round regular season with Cupido expected to play five of those, given he's working in Melbourne and based in Shepparton on the weekend.

The Goannas, who finished fourth last season, start the shortened campaign on the road to Leeton Whitton on July 18.