Captain Trent Hodkinson is excited to continue the Trent’s Kick for Kids initiative at the Newcastle Knights.
Each game, Hodkinson will dedicate his conversions to a child spending time in hospital and will write their name on his kicking tee.
This season the Newcastle Knights will work closely with the John Hunter Children’s Hospital to grant young patients a unique experience to be involved as well as the opportunity to meet Hodkinson.
“It’s something I’ve done for a couple of years now,” Hodkinson said.
“I write a kid’s name on my kicking tee and dedicate my conversion to them.
“Sometimes the tee gets a little run on TV and hopefully they are sitting at home or at the game to see that.
“It just puts a little smile on their face knowing their name is on the kicking tee out there and hopefully they get a bit of a kick out of it.”
Hodkinson explains the idea for Trent’s Kick for Kids came to him a few years ago when he was thinking of ways he could make a unique contribution to the community and make a difference to those going through a tough time.
“I was looking at something that could make a difference and that wasn’t already out there,” he said.
“It popped into my head that being a kicker, there’s a bit more exposure.
“I thought if I put a kid’s name on a tee and I knew they’d see it, and I thought they’d be quite happy about it.”
Since getting Trent Kicks for Kids up and running at the Knights, Domayne Kotara and Adidas have come on board to provide a special gift for each child involved. They will also receive an ISC kids Knights jersey with their name on the back as well as their personalised kicking tee from Hodkinson.