SCHOOLS and shopping centres will be part of the Legends of League itinerary as some former greats of the NRL hit the Whitsundays this week to spread cheer and raise money.

Players visited schools in Collinsville and Bowen yesterday and will visit Proserpine High and Whitsunday Christian College today to talk about the importance of education and share stories from their careers.

Former St George Dragons try-scoring machine Nathan Blacklock said the school visits were really important.

"We're speaking to young kids about our careers, what we went through, the sacrifices we made, and we try to stress that no matter where you are or where you start in life, school is important to your future,” he said.

"These school events, that's the main part of what we do, that's why we come up early.”

Craig Teevan, a former Queenslander and Brisbane Bronco, had visited the town before Tropical Cyclone Debbie hit and said it was good to see it in recovery.

"This for us is a chance to give people something to celebrate, another reason to get together,” he said.

"We typically get crowds of up to 2000 people and we expect a good crowd up here. Everyone is going to benefit from it.”

The All Stars match is the main event of the week, with a game between past league legends and Whitsunday legends at 7.30pm in Bowen at Denison Park on Saturday.

It will be a full day of rugby league games, including the Whitsunday Brahmans A-grade match.

The free event will ask for a gold coin donation, with proceeds going to Cyclone Debbie relief.

While the game is played in a charity spirit, former North Sydney Bear Craig Wilson did have one message for the local boys.

"If any of the Whitsunday guys get out of hand, we're just going to let Petero (Civoniceva) and John Hopoate sort 'em out,” Wilson said.

Matches start at 9.30am.