NZ Warriors to visit Mount Maunganui, Ōhope, Gisborne, Whitianga,

Vodafone Warriors players tackle Siliva Havili of the Canberra Raiders last season. Photo / Getty Images

Like many sports rugby league is one code that has seen dwindling numbers of player registrations - and New Zealand Rugby League officials want that to change.

To help future-proof the sport, a series of roadshows are being held this week - including two in the Bay of Plenty - in a bid to excite young children about the sport and encourage new player registrations, with music, food, fun games, opportunities to learn football skills, run drills, play Kiwi Tag and rub shoulders with some of the game's greats.

The first roadshow is being held in Gisborne today, before heading to Ōhope's Mahy Reserve from 4pm tomorrow and Mount Maunganui's Tay Street Beach Reserve from 10am on Saturday and Whitianga on Sunday.

Warriors' female players Georgia Hale and Crystal Rota will be part of the rugby league roadshow, which follows the men's Warriors team spending three days training at Mount Maunganui last week.

New Zealand Rugby League's Upper Central Zone Rugby League operations manager Hamana Amoamo says the roadshow is about sharing the love with grass roots fans and those young platers interested in playing or trying rugby league. The Roadshows will also allow local league clubs to be present as well.

"It's getting the love out there, taking it out to the people instead of expecting the people to come to us," Amoamo says.

The roadshows are free events and open to all members of the community. Amoamo is expecting a good turnout and hopes young players who are interested in giving league a go, to turn out and find out what it's all about.

"It's about kids having fun."

Amoamo says kids have so many options when it comes to sport these days, and often the sport they play can come down to cost and accessibility. Because of this reason, he says rugby league, like many codes, are facing declining participation numbers in children.

"There's so many options now for kids.

"I think sport in general, we had a meeting at the end of last year with different codes and everyone's struggling to keep numbers, it's the logistics, it's the costs, it's the other options."

Amoamo says there are some exciting players in the Bay of Plenty and Coastlines league competitions, the competition areas clubs in the Bay and central North Island play in, and wants to continue to see the women's game grow and the development of the sport, especially for the junior players.

The roadshows this weekend will be a good way for people to find out more about the sport, while also learning some skills from professional athletes.

Meanwhile, the Vodafone Warriors will make another visit to the Bay of Plenty next month, playing the Wests Tigers in a pre-season trial at the Rotorua International Stadium on March 1. it will be their last hit-out before the NRL season gets underway.

Rugby League roadshows:
Today: Gisborne Sound Shell, Gisborne, from 12pm. Tomorrow: Mahy Reserve, Ōhope, from 4-6pm. Saturday: Tay St Beach Reserve, Mount Maunganui, from 10am-2pm.
Sunday: Moewai Sports Park, Whitianga, from 10am.