The Bomaderry Tigers product and her Eastern Allies team, who were playing at the Gold Coast, had very little time to come together ahead of their first match on July 8 at Metricon Stadium.

"Everyone bonded really well over the first two days, so by the time we played we felt like very much a team," Phillips said.

"We also had a light training session to get used to playing with each other."

These two days of work set them up for a first up clash with Central Allies - a combination of South Australia and Northern Territory.

"Unfortunately, as we had a big squad, I was forced to sit out this game," she said.

"But it was a close game the whole way but we unfortunately ended up losing by four points (5.6-36 to 4.8-32).

"It was definitely a winnable game but it took us a while to get into the game.

"It was also hard to deal with the Central Allies side who had great skills in the air."

Next up for the St John the Evangelist Catholic High School student and her team was the dangerous Victoria Country.

"It was great to finally get out there, despite the muddy conditions," she said,

"We definitely gave Victoria a hard time out there and never stopped competing - they were lucky enough to come away with the win (6.6-42 to 2.0-12) and a highly entertaining game."

Eastern Allies third and final pool game was against powerhouse Victoria Metro.

"They [Victoria Metro] were an excellent team with very clean skills and great positioning on the field," Phillips said.

"Although we played our hardest, they were just too good for us, with us going down by 72 points.

"Personally, it was great to play at a whole other level and see the standard that I need to be at."

Although these results knocked Eastern Allies out of contention for finals, Phillips said there was plenty of positives to take from her team's performances.

"We all played well as a team but it was a much higher standard than a lot of us were used to," she said.

"We still did our very best and I personally felt that I did my job in the backline and had some good moments in both games."

Now that all her representative footy is over for 2019, which also includes stints with AFL South Coast and the AFL NSW/ACT Rams teams, the 17-year-old is hoping to bring her recent experiences back to club footy with Bomaderry, as they aim to defend their women's premierships title.

"It was such a great experience to play at a higher level of footy, to see where the standards are and aim for them," she said.

"I feel I have improved just by playing the championships because of the elite level that we played.

"It was definitely not something I am used to playing but I enjoyed it so much and look forward to playing more footy like it.

"I learnt things on and off the field in regards to my skills, techniques and set plays.

"I also have become more independent and have learnt many leadership skills that help to corporate in a team situation."

These championships also allowed Phillips to learn first hand about the AFLW competition and the pathways to her chasing her professional dream.

"While at the Gold Coast, I learnt about the pathway to the AFLW and the draft system, in a detailed chat with all of the teams, which was very interesting," she said.

"It was great to know where I sit in my AFL journey, as I am eligible for the 2020 draft this year.

"Until then I'm going to finish the season with Bomaderry and then take take any other opportunity I can to play at a high level of footy - to get me closer to achieving my dream."