Ray Stehr facts for kids

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Ray Stehr

Personal information
Full name	Raymond Ernest Stehr
Born	(1913-01-24)24 January 1913 Warialda, New South Wales, Australia
Died	2 June 1983(1983-06-02) (aged 70) Maroubra, New South Wales
Playing information
Height	181 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight	84 kg (13 st 3 lb)
Position	Prop
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1929–46 Eastern Suburbs 182 19 4 0 65 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1931–41 New South Wales 41 4 2 0 16 1933–38 Australia 11 2 0 0 6 1933–41 NSW City 7 3 2 0 9 1934 NSW Country 1 1 0 0 3
Coaching information
Club Years Team Gms W D L W% 1939, 41, 46 & 49 Eastern Suburbs 62 29 1 32 47 1947–48 Manly-Warringah 36 8 1 27 22 Total 98 37 2 59 38
As of 27 October 2009

Raymond Ernest Stehr (born January 24, 1913 – died June 2, 1983) was a famous Australian rugby league player. He played for his state, New South Wales, and for Australia. His club career was spent with the Eastern Suburbs team in Sydney. Many people think he was one of the best players of the 1900s.

Ray Stehr's Early Life

Ray Stehr was born in a country town called Warialda, New South Wales, in 1913. When he was eight years old, he became very sick. Doctors said he might never walk again because of blood clots near his spine.

He couldn't walk for two years and had to stay strapped to a stretcher. His back was in a plaster cast. His family moved to Sydney hoping to find a cure. After visiting a Chinese herbalist, the clots started to disappear. Even though doctors told him not to play contact sports, Ray became one of rugby league's strongest players.

Ray Stehr's Club Career

Ray Stehr started playing for the Eastern Suburbs club in 1928 when he was still a schoolboy. He played his first top-level game at just 15 years old. The next year, at 16 years and 85 days, he played his first regular competition game. He is still the youngest player to do this in Australia.

In 1934, Ray joined the Mudgee club as a captain and coach. He also led the Country team against a Sydney team. Later that year, he rejoined Easts. They lost the championship final that year.

Over the next three years, Ray was part of the Eastern Suburbs team that won three championships in a row: 1935, 1936, and 1937. They only lost one game during this time.

In 1940, Ray was the captain when Easts won their 8th championship. Their usual captain was injured, so Ray led the team to victory. After World War II, in 1945, he again led Eastern Suburbs to win another championship. He played 184 matches for Eastern Suburbs, which was a record at the time.

Playing for State and Country

1931 New South Wales players: Dave Brown, Ernie Norman, and Ray Stehr

Ray Stehr first played for New South Wales in 1931. Two years later, he was chosen for the 1933–34 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain. This was when Australian players traveled to Great Britain to play matches. On this tour, he played 26 games, including two Test matches against other countries.

Ray also played in Test series against New Zealand and Great Britain. In the series against Britain, he was sent off (told to leave the field) in two of the three games. This shows he was a very tough player. He went on his second Kangaroo tour in 1937–38.

Overall, Ray played for Australia 55 times, including 11 Test matches. He played 33 games for New South Wales. This is the third-highest number of games played for the state by any player.

Ray Stehr's War Service

World War II stopped Ray's international playing career early. He spent the war serving in the military. While stationed in Darwin, Ray was made captain of a team that played against a team from Central Australia.

After Playing Rugby

During his time as a rugby player, Ray Stehr also had a short career as a professional boxer.

After he stopped playing rugby in 1946, he stayed involved with the sport. He coached the Manly team in 1947-48 and Easts again in 1949. Ray also became a sports journalist. He wrote a column for a Sydney newspaper for many years and worked in television. He was also the president of the Easts club. In 1961, he was the commentator for the first Australian rugby league game ever shown live on TV. His famous sign-off phrase was always "Easts To Win!".

Ray Stehr passed away on June 2, 1983, at the age of 70.

Awards and Recognition

Ray Stehr was named in the Eastern Suburbs' greatest ever team. This was an honorary team chosen to celebrate the club's best players.

In February 2008, Ray Stehr was included in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players. This list was made to celebrate 100 years of rugby league in Australia.