The New Zealand Warriors and Newcastle Knights opened their 2011 season schedule with a charity match to raise money for the West Coast region. In a joint partnership between the two teams, the NZRL and NRL, all money raised from the match was divided between the Pike River mining relief fund and the West Coast Rugby League. The teams arrived on 3 February 2011 to carry out community appearances in the region. The Crusaders also announced that they would play their first home match of the 2011 Super Rugby season in the West Coast Rugby Union jersey. These were later auctioned off to raise money for the Pike River mining relief fund.
