Trbojevic helping Kick for a Cause as NRL unveils lofty $1 million ambition

Jake Trbojevic has urged the game's sharp-shooters to pack their kicking boots for Magic Round after helping launch a new fundraiser aiming to raise $1 million for cancer patients.

Trbojevic and his brothers Tom and Ben were on hand on Tuesday as the NRL launched the Kick for a Cause campaign to run at the annual festival of rugby league in Brisbane.

The sport will unite to give kids cancer the boot, with Youi donating $1000 for every conversion and penalty goal and $2000 for every field goal during Magic Round to paediatric cancer centres across Australia and New Zealand.

The cause is close to the Trbojevic’s hearts after the brothers formed a close bond with avid Manly supporter Beau Hewitt during his cancer battle. The superfan passed away in March 2025 but his legacy will live on through Kick for a Cause, with the NRL hoping to raise more than $1 million to support children with cancer.

Trbojevic’s kicking radar was on point at Tuesday’s launch and he hopes all the game’s leading kickers are on song at Suncorp Stadium in Round 11.

“I can only feel sorry for families going through it,” Trbojevic said. “Cancer has a lot to answer for, especially when it’s kids. No person deserves cancer, but no kid deserves it.

“To see the NRL and Youi get behind this cause is remarkable and it makes us very proud of the fact they’re launching here at 4 Pines Park with the Manly Sea Eagles.

“The wingers will need to run the tries around [to the goalposts] and the goal kickers just need to be on their game. We need to make sure we’re getting all the kicks at Magic Round.”

The NRL has teamed up with the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation and Starship Foundation to coordinate the fundraiser, with 11 hospitals across Australia and New Zealand to benefit from the cause.

The 17 clubs have each been connected to their local paediatric hospital and will conduct a number of community activations, including visits to cancer wards and other initiatives.

Injured Manly captain Tom Trbojevic said the fundraiser is a powerful reminder of the role rugby league can play in improving lives throughout the community.

“It’s so unfortunate to see someone in that situation but when we met Beau, his energy and personality were quite infectious for someone going through such a hard thing,” Trbojevic said.

“We really gravitated towards him because he was such a special kid. Unfortunately people have to go through these things and you just try to help where you can.”

The seeds for the Kick for a Cause campaign were first planted more than a decade ago when former Manly and Canterbury halfback Trent Hodkinson launched the Kick for Kids initiative.

Each week the playmaker dedicated his conversions to a child spending time in hospital and wrote their name on his kicking tee.

Hodkinson also donated a personalised tee and merch to the children to help bring joy during a challenging time.

The retired playmaker continues to dedicate his time to important community initiatives and is thrilled to see the NRL turn a small idea into a major fundraiser.

“To come up with an idea laying in bed and just have a light-bulb moment, to see where it’s progressed to now, it’s a massive up for the NRL,” Hodkinson said. “I retired and I didn’t want the concept to go to waste because I knew how much the kids got a big smile out of it.

“So it’s great to see the NRL do it at Magic Round and have all eyes on these kids and these players doing good things. It’s really exciting and I’m grateful it’s come back.”