Storm Purvis was recently signed by the Steel to play in the ANZ national championship.
Her selection came as a shock for the 18-year-old, 1.86m defender.
"It was something I had been aiming for in the next couple of years, but to get the call-up so early in my career was an amazing and surreal feeling."
The opportunity to train with high-class players and learn from them would be an invaluable experience, she said.
Purvis said the Steel was in a re-building stage and she admired their policy of using young talent to develop the game.
She has been a member of the New Zealand under-21 squad for the past two years.
She said her short-term goal was to play in the under-21 world championship in Glasgow in 2013.
"It would be a wonderful experience and something I have been targeting for the past couple of years."
When Purvis joins the Steel, she will be coached by Janine Southby and Natalie Avellino.
Southby is also the coach of the New Zealand under-21 squad.
Purvis came to Dunedin at the start of the year to attend Otago University, where she is in her first year of a four-year physical education degree.
She said juggling her sporting and academic careers had been a little harder than she had expected, but she was confident that by lightening her "study load" next year she could do both.
Purvis played for Otago in this year's Lois Muir challenge then made herself unavailable for the national championship because she wanted to concentrate on her studies and sort out a few injuries.
She said it was a good decision because she was now fit and confident of passing her exams.
She wanted to make the most of her ANZ contract and hoped it would lead to higher honours.
Purvis was mentored by former Silver Fern Belinda Colling, who has been working with the Otago-based players in the New Zealand under-21 squad.
She said Colling was an incredible source of inspiration and had given her great advice on how to create a good balance in life.
Silver Ferns captain Casey Williams was her idol.
"The way she has led that team over the past five years was amazing."
She said it would be a dream come true if she could make the Silver Ferns one day and play alongside Williams.
Purvis was born in Christchurch to parents William and Fiona.
They moved to Auckland along with her younger sister, Claudia, and older brother, Henri, when Purvis was 10.
In Auckland she attended Diocesan School. It was there that she developed a keen interest in netball, and she credits teacher Marcia Hardcastle with teaching her the basic skills.
While her mum and sister were heavily involved in horse riding, she said that for some reason, horses never really liked her, and the feeling was mutual.
Her father had tried a lot of sports and was now into endurance bike riding, something that frightened her mother.
Her brother is also attending the University of Otago and she said it was great to have him around, as they had a good relationship.
Purvis said she "loved" living in Dunedin and especially enjoyed going sightseeing. One of her favorite places to relax was Portobello. She liked the laid-back nature of Dunedin and the fact that everything was so central - unlike Auckland, where everything was chaotic.
Not that she gets much time to relax. Her trainer, Andrew Keen, puts her through her paces on a regular basis.
"He works me hard when I need it and gives me great advice."
Purvis will return to Auckland on Saturday before coming back to Dunedin to train with the Steel in January.
Once she has completed her degree, she would like to get involved in the media and combine that with her sporting life.
