The last 12 months have marked a couple of significant firsts for Mia Gentle in her burgeoning cricket journey.
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Last season the Tamworth teenager made the step up to grade, playing in the local fourth grade competition with North Tamworth.
Following on from that, at last week's under 19s Female Country Championships, she debuted for Central North.
The first time the 15-year-old has put her hand up for selection, she said it was "a great honour", especially being so young, and a really good experience.
She learnt a lot from watching how the other wickettkeepers go about things, and generally being around the older, more experienced, girls in the Central North side.
One of two debutants, the moment of receiving her first baggy red was all the more special for her dad, Hugh, presenting it.
He has been a big influence for her, and a real guiding hand in developing her game and particularly her keeping, being a keeper himself.
In fact Mia is the third in the family to stand behind the stumps with older brother Riley also a keeper.
"As I watched Riley keep, that's where I started to think oh yeah I'm going to do that," she said.
"Dad's been great, coaching me and helping me to get better at my keeping."
The two played together for the Redbacks last season, which she said was really good.
As for last week, she was pretty happy with how she performed.
"I thought I kept pretty well," she said.
Batting down the order, she didn't get a lot of opportunities but was not out a couple of times.
Central North ended up finishing sixth but weren't far off placing possibly higher, suffering a couple of narrow losses.
For Hugh, who has enjoyed a front-row seat to his daughter's progression, also coaching her in Tamworth junior sides, it was understandably "a proud moment" presenting Mia with her cap.
By his own admission her "hardest critic", he thought she did really well.
"Her performance last week was solid," he said.
"She had good growth over the course of the carnival and made, I think, a relatively good contribution to the side."
Previously having the opportunity to play with sons Riley and Luke, he said it was a "tremendously special occasion" to get to share that experience with Mia last season.
"It was a really pleasant surprise when Mia said that she wanted to play fourth grade with me, so to step out on the field as a father-daughter combo was great," he said.
They are set to do it all again when the 2023/24 local competition starts later this month.
Although for Mia the season is certainly already well underway.
Backing up from the Country Championships, she is this week in Singleton with the Northern Inland Bolters for the under 15s girls Country Youth Championships.
They start on Tuesday and run through to Friday.
It doesn't leave much time to enjoy the holidays, but the McCarthy student isn't complaining.
In her mind playing cricket is as good as any way to spend them.
Also a representative netballer and avid soccer player, she is hoping to take her cricket as far as she can.
