The NRL's commitment to assisting bushfire and drought-ravaged towns will ramp up next month when clubs travel to affected areas for the Road to Regions program.
Usually a one-week initiative where players visit rural places across the eastern seaboard, Road to Regions has been extended to a five-week period in light of the devastating bushfires.
The Dragons raised spirits this week with a two-day tour of the NSW south coast while Cronulla joined clean-up efforts in Kangaroo Valley.
Souths also visited Batemans Bay of their own accord last week.
Players from all 16 clubs will visit various communities between February 10 and 14, giving talks on respect to schools, running footy clinics with junior clubs, meeting residents and helping to increase cash-flow.
"The Road to Regions initiative is an evolution of what used to be the NRL's Community Carnival, so it's been something the game has done as part of the pre-season for about a decade now," NRL head of government and community relations Jaymes Boland-Rudder said.
"Over Christmas we saw the devastating fires come through and we wanted to expand the concept to not just support the communities who have been suffering from drought for a number of years, but also support the communities that have been devastated by these fires.
Best of NRL Road to Regions 2019
"Credit to the NRL clubs, they've really stepped up and have been amazing in supporting the expansion of the program.
"All the clubs have gone above and beyond to help us expand and get into those communities who need their spirits.
"It's sending an important message to those of us that are lucky enough to sit in Sydney or Brisbane and haven't had the impacts of fire: those communities are open for business, go and visit those communities because their local economies are really hurting."
Road to Regions will conclude with the Bulldogs-Raiders trial match in Port Macquarie on February 28 and the Panthers-Eels fixture in Bega on February 29.
Boland-Rudder said the teams will host "a whole series" of community events leading into their games.
Activities are also in the works around the Charity Shield clash featuring the Dragons and Rabbitohs in Mudgee on the 29th.
Road to Regions schedule - 10-14 February
- 11 Feb: Southern Highlands - Bundanoon and Exeter - Wests Tigers
- 10-12 Feb: Mt Isa, Cloncurry - Cowboys
- 12-14 Feb: Proserpine, Bowen, Collinsville - Dragons and Wests Tigers
- 10-12 Feb: St George, Lightning Ridge - Broncos and Titans
- 12-14 Feb: Warwick and surrounds - Sharks and Storm
- 10-12 Feb: New England/North-west NSW - Barraba, Manilla, Bingara, Inverell, Ashford, Tingha, Gravesend, Delungra, Warialda - Sea Eagles, Roosters, NRLW
- 12-14 Feb: North Coast NSW - Sawtell, Bellingen, Nambucca Heads, Macksville, South West Rocks, Smithtown, Kempsey - Bulldogs and Rabbitohs
- 10-12 Feb: Central West NSW - Grenfell, Canowindra, Cabonne, Cowra, Condobolin - Panthers and Knights
- 11-14 Feb: Harden, Boorowa, Temora, Cootamundra, Gundagai, Adelong, Tumut, Batlow - Eels and Raiders
