Lily Martin selected in St George Dragons Tarsha Gale squad

It's an exciting rise for the 17-year-old, who trialled successfully for the St George Dragons Tarsha Gale squad.

Despite clearly impressing selectors, Martin wasn't too confident she'd receive good news.

"I thought I honestly did average, so bad, I thought there's definitely no way," she laughed.

"So I was surprised when they got back to me."

Fortunately, she was wrong and her graduation day at Orange Anglican Grammar School was made more exciting after answering the call that afternoon.

"I was so shocked, literally so shocked," she said.

"I thought 'oh my god', I didn't know how to feel, I'd been wanting it for ages."

Playing rugby league since she was 12, Martin has always aimed for the best and League Tag with Bloomfield Tigers was where it started, From there, the Western Women's Tackle competition came calling and she's now spent three years with Orange Vipers.

A season with Orange Hawks was also thrown in there while Molong was her home this season in the Woodbridge Cup.

Representative touch football with Orange Thunder is also on Martin's resume but tackle footy has always been her preference.

"I just wanted a bit more contact," she said about starting with Vipers.

Trialling with the Dragons was a decision that came from a lot of self belief for Martin.

Having been selected for Western Rams previously, her chance to play in the green jersey was ruined by COVID.

But missing the chance to play representative footy didn't keep her away from aiming for the Tarsha Gale squad.

"I thought I can do it, let's just do it," she said.

And from her perspective she couldn't have found a better environment to show off her skills.

"Michelle Anderson from the Dragons was so nice and very comforting - it's a good vibe up there, very professional but they're still your friend, I liked it," she said.

Pre-season training for the squad will begin soon before Martin plays in the nine-round competition next year. Whether she makes the move to Sydney will depend on university.

While she waits to see what the future holds, the half will continue to play for Vipers, a club she said she's learnt so much from.

"They've played a big role, particularly my coaches Martin Power and Guy Ruddy, they've been my major coaches over the last three years and have been really good, very supportive and encouraging," she explained.

Martin's admiration for her coaches didn't stop at Vipers either. There's a definite respect for her Molong coach Ged Fulwood.

"It was good, I liked playing Woodbridge," Martin said.

"Ged was really good, he taught me a lot about my kicking style."

And while she's ticked off a number of teams, Martin has goals to play for more, at a high level.

"Playing NRLW is definitely a goal," she stated.

"And hopefully NSW in the future."