Players will don blue armbands this weekend to show their commitment to road safety and honour people who have died on Victorian roads.
The initiative comes as 175 people have lost their lives on Victorian roads in 2025, 18 more than the same time last year.
The majority of fatalities have occurred in regional areas — where players, coaches and volunteers have a reliance on their vehicles and regularly travel long distances for games and training.
The TAC is partnering with AFL Victoria for a seventh season to deliver Road Safety Round. This year, the spotlight is on speeding — a leading cause of more than 30 per cent of fatal crashes and 25 per cent of serious injury crashes in Victoria.
Goulburn Valley League general manager Brad Noonan highlighted the importance of the initiative for the players and staff of the GVL.
“As a league, we know the importance of this messaging for not only the community at large, but also for our member clubs, some of which have been directly impacted by road trauma,” he said.
“The league is right behind efforts to promote road safety across the region, particularly when the number of lives lost from road trauma is 10 per cent higher than the same time last year.
“With our players, coaches, club officials and supporters travelling large distances across the region to games, it’s an important message for all of us.”
MFNL general manager Dale Norman highlighted his own experiences on the roads throughout the season and wants the round to be a reminder for drivers to stay off their phones to ensure everyone arrives at their locations safely.
“I drive many miles throughout the year and a pet peeve of mine is distracted drivers. It’s very frightening to see a car come towards you because they’ve got their head down on their phone,” he said.
“It’s just a reminder to slow down, put the phone down and concentrate on driving or risk becoming the next fatality or injury.
“The main thing is for everyone to arrive and get home safely, it’s a great reminder for our young drivers to open their eyes, so that is a major focus.”
HDFNL general manager Jen Mannes outlined the personal aspect of the round for the HDFNL, as the competition has lost players in the past to road-related incidents.
“We’ve lost quite a few young lives with road trauma in our competition, so it is very pertinent to our league because there’s a lot of travel,” she said.
“They’re on the road early with games on the weekend and late at night for training, so its very relevant for us.
“The weather and country roads are quite different to the city, so we need to make sure that message gets across to our young people who are part of our community.”
