Jasmine Peters was 12 when she was unexpectedly thrust into the world of rugby league.
"My mum doesn't like this story," she laughed.
Peters' soccer training was cancelled on the same day as her school's rugby grand final and she convinced her dad to take her along.
"We went over to the Mackay Junior Rugby League field and I played my first ever rugby league game," she said.
"I happened to get Man of the Match — or Woman of the Match — as well."
Now 19, Peters is a rising star in the NRLW.
She made her debut this year for the Gold Coast Titans and plays for the North Queensland Gold Stars — the region's team in the state league.
The young side is made up of players from Townsville, Cairns and Mackay who train in satellite squads brimming with local talent.
Eight Gold Stars were contracted to the NRLW this year as the popularity of the sport continued to climb.
"Girls are coming through with a lot more knowledge about rugby league and, playing at a semi-professional level at a lot younger age," coach Gavin Lloyd said.
The growth of the NRLW
Soon, more women from North Queensland — considered the heartland of rugby league — could have the opportunity to play at the highest level.
The NRLW is on the cusp of a major expansion, with the Cowboys among several teams to lodge an application to enter the competition from 2023.
"I think it's amazing," Peters said.
"Just the fact that we're getting enough screen time, we're getting enough of an audience watching us play, it's becoming a bigger game and creating those opportunities for other girls to be part of the sport at that higher elite level."
Donning a Cowboys jersey would be a dream come true for Gold Stars players like Lauren Moss, who had her sights set on an NRLW debut.
"It's the best news I think I've heard all year," Moss said.
The 30-year-old mine worker, who was recruited to year's Titans squad but never played first grade, only picked up rugby league about six years ago.
"I was only doing it for fun and for the enjoyment of it, but seeing the pathways and seeing where we can go with it, it just makes it all the more exciting," she said.
Making history
As part of the NRLW expansion, teams will move to a $350,000 salary cap which is set to increase players' pay by an average of 28 per cent.
Lloyd said it was a promising sign for players who balanced a delicate tightrope of work, sport and study with little compensation.
"I think the way it's going, in two or three years they'll possibly make a living out of playing rugby league," he said.
For Gold Stars captain Romy Teitzel, the prospect of a Cowboys women's team would be extra special.
"Growing up in North Queensland, everyone looked up to the Cowboys, no matter if you're a boy or a girl," she said.
Teitzel, who led the Newcastle Knights for their debut season this year, said she was eager to see every NRL club one day field a women's team.
"Like many of the girls around my age, we didn't have anything to aspire to growing up," she said.
"The game has grown so much in the last 12 months, and on a professional basis, I think it's just going to keep skyrocketing."
