2009 Community Carnival

Author: NRL.com
Timestamp: Thu 22 Jan 2009, 04:17 PM

Flooding in communities around the Gulf of Carpentaria will not stop the biggest One Community Carnival in history from bringing some much-needed joy to Rugby League fans in far north Queensland.

Sydney Roosters forward Willie Mason and Gold Coast Titans back-rower Mark Minichiello will be among the stars visiting communities in the Gulf, an area in which many families are currently isolated and requiring food drops due to flooding that has cut roads.

Special charter flights have been arranged to ensure the players can get to communities across the region.

“Hopefully we can put a few smiles on some faces up there,” Mason said today.

“The Community Carnival is always a fun time of the year for the boys and it means a lot to the fans in the areas we get to visit.”

The One Community Carnival runs from February 4-6 with Scott Prince, Andrew Ryan, Jarrod Mullen, Craig Fitzgibbon, Sam Thaiday and Chris Sandow among the NRL stars who will visit more than 50 communities across two countries and three states and territories, stretching from Darwin to the Southern Highlands.

NRL Chief Executive, Mr David Gallop, will join players in Harden, ARL Chief Executive, Mr Geoff Carr, will join players in Casino, Kyogle and Woodenbong while CRL Chief Executive, Mr Terry Quinn, will join players in the far west of NSW at Cobar, Nyngan and Bourke.

Storm and Warriors players will also hold activities in Geelong and Auckland respectively in the coming weeks.

The 2009 Community Carnival follows on from the success of last year’s Harvey Norman Regional Celebrations, the biggest ever celebration of the game in the bush. The Community Carnival will feature players in the following areas:

Destination	Players
Burnett	Josh Morris (Bulldogs) Michael Hodgson (Bulldogs) Andrew Suniula (Sea Eagles) Junior Palau (Sea Eagles) John Sutton (Rabbitohs) Chris Sandow (Rabbitohs)
Cape York	Sam Thaiday (Broncos) Palmer Wapau (Broncos) Ben Hannant (Bulldogs) Jamal Idris (Bulldogs) Antonio Kaufusi (Cowboys) Ashley Graham (Cowboys) Dan Hunt (Dragons) Nick Emmett (Dragons)
Casino, Kyogle, Woodenbong	Tim Browne (Sea Eagles) Michael Bani (Sea Eagles) Danny Wicks (Knights) Cory Paterson (Knights) Luke Stuart (Rabbitohs) Colin Best (Rabbitohs) Mario Fenech (NRL)
Cobar, Nyngan, Bourke	Andrew Ryan (Bulldogs) Gary Warburton (Bulldogs) Joe Picker (Raiders) Scott Logan (Raiders) Luke Bailey (Titans) Will Zillman (Titans)
Darwin	Ben Ross (Sharks) Luke Covell (Sharks) Blake Green (Sharks) Scott Prince (Titans) Jordan Atkins (Titans) Luke O’Dwyer (Titans)
Gladstone	PJ Marsh (Broncos) Nick Kenny (Broncos) Ben Smith (Eels) Matt Keating (Eels) Rhys Wesser (Rabbitohs) Shannon McPherson (Rabbitohs) Nigel Vagana (NRL)
Gulf of Carpentaria and Mid West region	Aaron Payne (Cowboys) Scott Bolton (Cowboys) Brenton Bowen (Titans) Mark Minichiello (Titans) Taniela Tuiaki (Wests Tigers) Beau Ryan (Wests Tigers) Willie Mason (Roosters) Matt Hall (Roosters)
Harden, Grenfell, Boorowa	Josh Cordoba (Eels) Kevin Kingston (Eels) Alan Tongue (Raiders) Justin Carney (Raiders) Brett Morris (Dragons) Ricky Thorby (Dragons)
Merriwa, Coolah, Binnaway	Steve Simpson (Knights) Chris Houston (Knights) Tim Grant (Panthers) Keith Peters (Panthers) Craig Fitzgibbon (Roosters) Ryan Williamson (Roosters)
Narrabri, Wee Waa, Boggabri	Jake Lingard (Sea Eagles) Vic Mauro (Sea Eagles) Chris Heighington (Wests Tigers) Chris Lawrence (Wests Tigers) Brad Tighe (Panthers) Geoff Daniela (Panthers)
Southern Highlands	Kris Keating (Eels) Todd Lowrie (Eels) Ben Creagh (Dragons) Mickey Paea (Dragons) Troy Thompson (Raiders) Josh Miller (Raiders)
Taree, Forster, Gloucester	Mark O’Meley (Roosters) Javarn White (Roosters) John Morris (Wests Tigers) Liam Fulton (Wests Tigers) Jarrod Mullen (Knights) Scott Dureau (Knights)
Warwick	Peter Wallace (Broncos) Andrew McCullough (Broncos) Donald Malone (Cowboys) Shane Tronc (Cowboys) Paul Aiton (Panthers) Adam Woolnough (Panthers)