The tournament, which kicks off next Thursday, is Fahey’s first time on the World Cup stage. The 28-year-old has represented Australia twice before in trans-Tasman test series against arch-rivals New Zealand in 2007 and 2011.

Fahey is the only non-Sydney based player in the squad which will be heavily favoured to take out the World Cup title given Australia’s traditional dominance of the sport.

But she said the Aussies wouldn’t be able to take anything for granted against an emerging Kiwi outfit.

“Australia usually does very well but every year New Zealand gets better so you just don’t know,” Fahey said. “The game is a lot newer to them and every year they get more girls playing so we can’t go over there thinking we’re just going to beat them again.”

Representing her country entails plenty of dedication on Fahey’s part with the St Gregory’s Primary School teacher required to travel to Sydney for training each week.

Australia will field 26 teams at the four-day tournament including six Indigenous sides and four Barbarians outfits.

Teams from as far afield as Great Britain, Malta, Lebanon and Samoa will also take part.

Fahey most recently competed at the National Championships earlier this month where her Southern Regions side went down in the semi-finals to Central Coast.

The physical education teacher meanwhile, says it is past time Queanbeyan hosted its own Oztag competition with local players currently required to travel to Canberra to compete.

“We’ve got to get a competition up and running in Queanbeyan,” she said. “Even a small mixed competition one night a week would be great.

“Oztag is just huge at the moment. If you look at Canberra and places like Calwell, Kaleen, Kippax you name it, there’s a competition going on somewhere every night of the week.

“There’s a touch competition in Queanbeyan at the moment but if you put an Oztag competition on a different night, I think it’d do very well.”

Fahey also said she was grateful to the Queanbeyan City Council which on Wednesday approved a $600 funding grant to help cover the costs of her World Cup appearance.