JETS midfielder Joe Ledley doesn't want to see another exercise bike any time soon.
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But the Welsh international does want to play the final four games of the Jets' regular season.
And, significantly, he does want to secure a contract with the Newcastle Jets for next season.
That was the motivation for Ledley to leave his wife and three young children in Cardiff, return to Australia and endure 14 days in quarantine in a Sydney hotel.
Ledley was simply glad to "get some fresh air" after his first training session back with the squad on Friday.
"I had a lot of doubts about coming back," Ledley told The Herald. "One minute I was coming, the next minute I wasn't. I was up and down. The worst thing about it was leaving my wife and kids. I did leave them before but this is totally different. The schools [in Wales] are all closed and everything is in lock down. I didn't want to leave her with the three kids. They wanted to come out and they can't.
"My wife said if I don't come over now, I can't expect to sign for next season.
"I want to be here next season and I need to show the team respect. They welcomed me with open arms and are a fantastic bunch of boys."
Ledley and assistant coach Kenny Miller finished their stint in quarantine at midnight on Thursday and were back on the training pitch Friday. They will be joined on Saturday by coach Carl Robinson, who reunited with his family in Canada during A-League's hiatus.
"I was up at 8am to be at training at 9.30am, " he said. "Brice our the fitness coach looked after me. I did the warm-up, some passing drills and a little bit of possession. It wasn't too hard. Carl will be back in tomorrow and it will be a tough session. The intensity will be higher as will the expectation levels."
Ledley ticked over during quarantine by doing "Les Mills exercise classes" and churning out kilometres on an exercise bike.
"I told them when I walked in [to training] that I don't want to see another bike for the rest of this season, not even for recovery. I'm finished with them," he said.
"I was in quite a small room. Brice sent down a bike and some bands. That was the hardest thing, trying to do as much as you could in a small environment."
The Jets resume their campaign against Sydney FC at Jubilee Oval in 10 days.
"Fitness wise I have been looking after myself. It is just a matter of getting the feel of the ball," Ledley said. "Carl is a possession-based coach and I'm sure I will get into it pretty quickly.
"I should know towards the end of next week if I'm ready to play. Whether it is the right decision to start, I don't know. There are four games and I want to be involved in all of them. That's the aim. Everyone wants to be involved not just myself."
Jets chief executive Lawrie McKinna has held preliminary talks with Ledley but is waiting clarity over next season's salary cap before tabling an offer.
"I want to be here next season," Ledley said. "The big question will be what the situation is with families coming over. "My wife and kids are desperate to come over and experience a new lifestyle. It's down to me to put in good performances. We will see after these four games."
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