Rugby Union: Rosie Ferguson makes her Uni 7s debut for University of Newcastle

The 22-year-old will jump virtually straight from the 7s series into pre-season training with the Waratahs Super W squad.

Selected initially to be part of the invitational program, to make the pre-season squad is beyond her wildest expectations.

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"Just being recognised at that first level was exciting enough for me," Ferguson said.

"I wasn't really expecting much, I was just really grateful for the experience."

"So getting that call-up was really exciting and again I'm not expecting much from it but just really stoked that I've been recognised at that kind of level and hopefully I get a bit more experience in the 15s game and I can transfer that to my other forms."

It will mean heading down to Sydney twice a week for training, and a couple of Saturdays as well, and a bit of juggling with work and other commitments, but she is looking forward to it.

First though she has one more round of the Uni 7s.

That will be played in Canberra on October 29 and 30.

The Newcastle round on the weekend was Ferguson's first after missing the first round in Adelaide after tearing two ligaments in her ankle playing for NSW Country the week before.

It was touch and go to her playing, also having bone bruising in her other ankle from a "pretty bad sprain" she picked up at the Waratahs' final trial the Sunday before going away with the Corellas.

Compounding that she was at the start of the week laid low with an ear infection. It kept her bed bound for a couple of days.

But she shrugged off that, and while admittedly not 100 per cent looked far from out of place in that environment.

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"It was really good to finally get out there, get used to that environment, that level of footy," Ferguson said.

"I was really proud of the girls. We came fourth, which was a two place improvement from the week before, so I'm excited to see how we go in Canberra in a couple of weeks."

Playing seven games in two days was "challenging", especially in the warm conditions and not having played much 7s for "a hot minute".

"It was a very different kind of feel, you kind of forget how long 14 minutes can be," she joked.

"But it was really great and it's a learning curve."

Her first involvement at that level, Ferguson confessed to reflecting to partner Dale Scott after the first day that she had "played awful".

"I was really upset about my performance thinking that I didn't really put in as much as I could," she said.

"But after watching the tapes back I didn't really play that bad at all."

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It was more a mental thing than anything, feeling like she wasn't as prominent or had the opportunities she is accustomed to with Pirates.

"You've got to put yourself in that mental space that you're not going to perform at the same level as you do locally at a national level," she said.

Their second game against Sydney Uni, which they won 14-7, was an interesting one for Ferguson, pitting her against former Pirates team-mate Claudia Nielsen.

"It was very funny obviously knowing Claud for a couple of years now. Her dad and mum were both there watching and when we played Sydney Uni her dad was yelling out 'go Sydney Uni but also go Rosie'," she said.

"It was very different playing against her, I much prefer playing with her."

The region was well represented with Armidale's Anastasia Martin also suiting up for the University of Canberra.

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