Westpac NSW Blues coach Laurie Daley and captain Isaah Yeo have today helped launch a social media campaign, in conjunction with the NSWRL and NSW Government, to promote road safety in a bid to reduce serious injuries and fatalities on roads across the state.
Daley and Yeo were joined at the launch at Tweed Coast Raiders Juniors Club in the Tweed Shire by NSW Minister for Roads and Minister for Regional Transport, The Hon. Jenny Aitchison MP, and the Westpac NSW Blues, who are in camp at Kingscliff to prepare for the Ampol State of Origin decider in Brisbane on Wednesday 8 July.
“The NSWRL has had a long association with Transport for NSW, and we have worked together to help young people across regional NSW make better decisions on the road,” NSWRL Chief Executive David Trodden said.
“The Westpac NSW Blues have shown in the first two camps they are only too willing to engage with the local community, and they will continue to show the same level of support they have for previous campaigns as they prepare for the Ampol State of Origin series decider.
“Our True Blues are also happy to provide their time to travel around NSW and share their own personal stories, which is also helping to make a difference.
“The Knock-On Effect campaign remains an important community initiative, and I look forward to continuing to deliver positive messages in 2026.”
The 2026 online campaign “Better Out Here” stars four Blues players who grew up in regional NSW and know firsthand about the importance of driving safely on country roads.
It features Yeo and Westpac NSW Blues back-rower Liam Martin, Westpac NSW Blues Women’s back-rower Kezie Apps, and True Blue Dylan Edwards providing road safety tips and talking about the impact of road fatalities in regional NSW, with 241 people dying on country roads in 2025.
“Country drivers die on country roads,” Yeo says. “On our roads one bad decision impacts an entire community.”
Martin adds: “Don’t drive tired, slow down and never drink and drive.”
The Regional Roadshow toured Tamworth last week in the lead-up to NSWRL’s Regional Magic Round, which featured five games of The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup across three days at Scully Park, with True Blues Wade Graham, Kylie Hilder and Andrew Ryan delivering the program.
The campaign will continue in Tweed Heads this week and end in the Shoalhaven, and will be delivered by Hilder, Ryan and Rugby League legend Dean Widders.
NSW Minister for Roads and Minister for Regional Transport, The Hon. Jenny Aitchison MP, said: “Too many lives are being lost or seriously injured on our roads and our communities suffer the pain for years. We’re the only ones who can stop the knock-on effect.
“A knock-on may seem like a small error on a footy field, but it’s one that can have the largest of consequences. It’s no different out on the road. Before you drive, think about the effect one small bad decision can make.
“Road safety programs like this and the “Better Out Here” campaign have a unique power to resonate with young people, connecting with them in ways statistics alone can’t.
“When familiar athletes share personal stories, it helps our community realise road safety is about much more than rules, it’s about protecting lives and supporting each other.”
NSWRL and the NSW Government first teamed up in 2017 to deliver the Regional Roadshow for Transport NSW as part of The Knock-On Effect campaign.
The campaign, which reminds young people that one bad decision behind the wheel can affect an entire community just like a knock-on in Rugby League can impact the outcome of a game, has delivered road safety messages to more than 8000 participants at 53 regional areas.
In 2021, the partnership was extended even further to the naming rights for the state’s premier Rugby League competition, The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup.
Other campaigns involving True Blues have included Brad Fittler and Greg Alexander talking in 2019 about the tragic death of Alexander’s brother, Ben, in a road crash, and a 2023 video with Westpac NSW Blues fullback James Tedesco and lock Cameron Murray, and True Blue Josh Addo-Carr encouraging road users to make smart choices.
