The St George Illawarra Dragons will this weekend face reigning NRLW premiers the Brisbane Broncos for the first time since last year's grand final.
Last week's debutant Talei Holmes is confident the Red V can bring home the victory with a few crucial adjustments from last week's loss to the Roosters.
"Training has been good this week, last week we gave away too many penalties so that is something we need to work on," Holmes said
"We had our shape and structure right on the weekend, coming together and working as a team is what will help close out the game for us."
Holmes only played 23 minutes on the weekend but it was eventful to say the least. She finished the game with a black eye.
"It's my first black eye so it's definitely a wake-up call. It just shows how big and tough the women's game is. It's a big step up from club footy,"
The 20-year-old second rower mentioned that current NSW Women's Premiership and Dragons teammates Jess Sergis and Maddie Studdon influenced her motivation as a rugby league player.
"Seeing how big Jess and Maddie were in the women's game made me want to push even harder to want to be like them and play in their teams," Holmes said.
Exciting 18-year-old winger Jaime Chapman also debuted last week. After making her way through the Dragons' development player system, she finally earned her call up to first grade.
"It was such a privilege to play amongst my idols. It's a massive achievement in my life." she said.
Despite her youth, Chapman is used to playing on the big stage as she represented New South Wales in the Under 18’s State of Origin in 2019.
"Having played in a big stadium for origin made me feel more comfortable for my debut," Chapman said.
"My dad encouraged me a lot growing up, leading up to the game he told me to be myself and play my own game."
When Jaime was asked what advice she could give to females that were in her position growing up, she confidently replied: "Trust the process, it all comes in good time.
"If you keep putting in the hard work it's going to work out for you, and you'll achieve the things you want to achieve.”
Both Holmes and Chapman will play their second game in the NRLW this weekend against a very confident Brisbane side.
With one game under their belt, they now have a sense of familiarity heading into this weekend's grand final rematch.
