The Armidale cricketer, 13, has just been selected in the ACT/NSW Country under-16 squad for an upcoming tournament. Unsurprisingly, the batting allrounder is its youngest member.

Making the side is another crucial step in her goal of becoming a professional cricketer and representing Australia.

Read also:

Playing for Central North at this month's under-16 Country Championships at Raymond Terrace, the opener finished second on the batting standings after scoring 75 runs in three innings, with a highest score of 42 and an average of 25.

"I think it's probably the best I've ever performed at cricket, to be honest," she said. "I put a lot of effort into it."

Parsons was named in the ACT/NSW Country squad earlier this year, but had to perform well at the Country Championships to keep her spot.

She will attempt to use the Albury tournament as a springboard to bigger things - just like she did in 2019 when, as a year 6 student at Ben Venue Public, she starred as NSW's PSSA girls team won back-to-back under-12 national cricket championships.

Heading into year 9 at Armidale Secondary College in 2022, Parsons remembers her final year of primary school as a special time.

It was a year in which she represented North West in four sports - cricket, hockey, softball and soccer - and was named North West primary school athlete of the year, the award presented to her by former NRL star Jamie Lyon.

"It was sad that I had to leave them," she said of Ben Venue Public. "But it was probably the happiest year [of my life]."

The medium pacer has a delightful mix of modestly and confidence. Put on the spot, she struggled to come up with the three words that best describe her - before settling on athletic, funny and kind.

ACT/NSW Country will play NSW Metropolitan, Victoria Metropolitan and Victoria Country at Albury on January 24-27.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: