That was in 2017, three years after she sat on the WIN Stadium hill and watched the Jillaroos take on a Kiwi-Ferns side featuring the likes Honey Hireme and Teuila Fotu-Moala.

She's now played with and against all four giants of women's league. It's a reality that really hits home as she prepares to return to WIN Stadium on October 25 - this time on the other side of the fence.

"Two years ago Ruan Sims and Simaima Taufa came to my high school and gave a talk during their [2017] World Cup prep," Davis recalls.

"It's something I remember very vividly. I've played with them and against them so it's pretty surreal. [The Test] here was the first time I saw Teuila play and the hits were just huge.

"It's going to be a pretty surreal feeling getting to play at my home ground. Going in last year for my [Test] debut I was so nervous and I didn't really take the experience in.

"Looking back there's a lot of regrets about the nerves and not letting it sink in. I'm looking forward to going in a lot more confident and enjoying the experience a lot more.

"I think I'm definitely in a heaps better place in my footy career in terms of confidence so I'm really excited to play a Test in Wollongong."

The regrets may have come in hindsight, but facing the Kiwi Ferns in New Zealand meant the nerves were warranted for the then 18-year-old.

"I was on the bench for the first 20 minutes and I was expecting the pace to drop off but the pace of the game was just frantic the whole time," she said.

"When I got on for the last 10 minutes of the first half they were still going 100 per cent. I looked at the clock and I'd been on for two minutes, I thought I'd been on for 20.

"The pace and tightness of the game... everything was up a notch. It was crazy."

The 2018 whirlwind was pulled up somewhat by a second serious elbow injury earlier this year. It kept her out of Origin reckoning and the Corrimal product admits she feared the road back to a Jillaroos jumper could be a long one.

"After I got my injury this year and missed out on Origin and was [number] 14 for Country I was a bit concerned," she said.

"I think before that injury I was as fit as I've ever been. I'd worked really, really hard so I knew if I kept doing that there was no way I'd come back be a worse player than I was last year.

"It's been pretty up and down the last few days after the [NRLW] grand final but seeing the news I was very, very excited and very grateful to be selected again."

It's the icing on the cake after another solid season - that also saw her lead Corrimal to a third straight Illawarra League crown - but Davis echoed calls for the NRLW season to be lengthened in the coming seasons.

"I think that's definitely we're everyone's hoping it goes," Davis said.

"It'll get their eventually, it's just about working out what's best for all the girls at the moment. It's so hard with the semi-professionalism trying to work out the money side of things.

"If it did happen a lot of girls would have to quit their fulltime job. It's slowly getting into that era but it's extremely hard for the pathway development people to figure it out.

"Hopefully next year it expands a bit, especially for people who are young in their career like me who want to develop their game as best they can.

"It's really hard with just the three games to build your confidence, learn and develop your game. I'm sure it'll get there eventually."