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St George Illawarra debutant Cody Ramsey scored a double on debut as a fitting reward for years of resilience.
Cody Ramsey had his bags packed as a teenager, ready to give up his shot at the NRL at St George Illawarra and head back to Molong.
Working as a mechanical plumber, he was doing 16-hour days as an 18-year-old trying to squeeze work at North Ryde and training in Wollongong into one.
On Saturday though, it all became worth it with a double on debut, giving sorry Dragons fans a glimpse of their future in the 37-8 loss to Canberra.
"I did want to go home a thousand times, but Mum told me to stick it out and it's paid off so far," Ramsey said.
"I packed my bags pretty much. I had no-one up here and I was a bit lost. I didn't know what to do.
"I think back to that all the time, but it's a lot easier now."
Ramsey's reward for his Mum was to almost send her Molong pub broke.
With free rounds on offer for every try he scored, Ramsey looked like he was going to repeat the feats of Penrith's Charlie Staines' four tries on debut this year.
He crossed for two in the first half, showing a bolt of speed to run onto two cut-out balls from Matt Dufty.
He should have had a third on the half-time hooter via an intercept had Zac Lomax not been ruled offside.
At his mum Kim Stojanov's pub, 15 patrons streamed the match on laptops and iPads with Pay TV not connected to the Freemasons Hotel.
But the atmosphere would've been electric, second only to where his Mum sat in a WIN Stadium bay alongside 57 family and friends.
"Cody has worked so, so hard," she told Fox Sports.
"I know it takes a village to raise a child. But Cody has done it all himself.
"I just can't believe his dream has come true and he is out there doing what he loves. It's amazing."
Saturday's debut doubled as a reunion, with Ramsey unable to see his family since March while in the NRL bubble.
It also proved a reward for resilience, after the 20-year-old starred at the Perth Nines in February but was out injured until June with shoulder surgery.
