He once roamed the lush green fields of the Highlands playing his heart out for his beloved Moss Vale Dragons.
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Now he has played in front of nearly 29,000 roaring fans at the Bankwest Stadium opening and that's just the beginning for this rising star.
Former Moss Vale Dragon and now Parramatta Eel, Ray Stone has been working hard to realise his NRL dreams and has tasted the success of making the first grade squad.
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That taste has him hungry for further success, but he has yet to crack the consistency of his name being called every week.
"A lot of hard work went into preseason from the whole squad," Stone said.
"Everyone is fighting to play in the 17 every week, unfortunately for me I've got my opportunities through others being injured.
"So for me, my next step is to be consistent and continue to keep working hard to be a week in week out first grader."
Going from the strong, supportive local rugby scene Moss Vale provides to working his way through to firsts, Stone always remembers his time in the Highlands fondly.
"They are two completely different environments," Stone said.
"But I always loved playing for Mossy. It will always be home for me and I'm still good mates with all the boys I played with down there.
"It's been a massive change from what I'm used to playing at BankWest, best atmosphere I've ever played in front of, the crowd never dies down from start to finish.
"Playing in the opening for BankWest Stadium is definitely the highlight of the season so far and hopefully there will be more during the rest of the season."
Parramatta Eel teammate, Daniel Alvaro who Stone calls affectionately, "Chug" was also a Southern Highlander and played for the Mittagong Lions.
Stone and Alvaro still like to give each other a bit of stick over the old days.
"Yeah me and Chug don't mind having a dig at each other about the local derby," Stone said.
"I always love to bring up the year Mossy beat Chugga's Mitta side 10-4 in the grand final of the under 15s.
"I didn't even play in the game, I was 11, but I know he's still burning about it so it's fun bringing it up when I get the chance."