If the students at Dungog Public School were not Newcastle Knights fans before a visit from Jesse Ramien, they certainly are now.
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The 21-year-old who debuted in the National Rugby League in 2017 with Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks is now a proud Knights centre and was welcomed to the school with banners.
He helped NRL development officers deliver the 'Tackle bullying' program to students with an engaging talk around bullying in sport and achieving goals.
As well as patiently signing autographs for a long queue of students he also had some giveaways.
The school's principal Kylie Pennell was born and raised in Coonamble where Jesse also grew up and she once taught Jesse.
For Jesse, talking to the kids at Dungog was something he was happy to do on his day off from training.
"Coming from a country area like Dungog, I can relate to how these kids feel, seeing an NRL player come and talk to them," he said.
"I was once sitting where they are and it's great to be able to come and talk to them."