AUCKLAND (FIBA Oceania Women's Championship) - Antonia Edmondson remembers very well the beginning of her New Zealand Tall Ferns career.

The Christchurch-born forward, who is likely to have a starring role at this year's FIBA Oceania Women's Championship (15 August in Melbourne and 17 August in Tauranga) played in the event for the first time in 2007.

But she was already a member of the program by then.

"The first time I was invited to a training camp was in 2005 when I was 18, and it was a huge shock," she said to FIBA.com.

"I felt very lucky to be there at that time and quite out of my depth with some of the more experienced players there.

I remember having to guard Miao Lijie and the speed of the game being greater than anything I had experienced before. - Edmondson

"The first time I played for the Tall Ferns was in 2007 on a tour to China."

Former China national team star Miao would one year later lead the women's tournament at the Beijing Olympics in scoring.

In the years to follow, Edmondson showed plenty of talent and hunger.

She became a terrific player.

In 2009, she was New Zealand's leading scorer at the FIBA Oceania Women's Championship, averaging 15 points per game.

In  2013, she averaged 22 points per game in the two-game series against Australia's Opals.

Her New Zealand experience has yet to take Edmondson to a FIBA Women's World Championship or an Olympic Games, but it has nevertheless been very important for her.

Not only has she been able to represent her country, which is the highest honor for a player.

The national team trials and games have made Edmondson better.

They have boosted her confidence.

"Firstly, my Tall Ferns experience gave me an opportunity to compete against very high level competition and to test myself against these players," she said.

"The second thing is it helped give me a disciplined approach to training as a lot of the time earlier on, members of the squad were based all over New Zealand and the world so I would need to train at home on my own to ready myself for camps and tours."

Edmondson has gone on to play at a high level, competing for WNBL clubs Christchurch Sirens, Dandenong Rangers, Bendigo Spirit, Adelaide Lightning and since 2012, the West Coast Waves.

"It is extremely tough and is continuing to get stronger," Edmondson said of the WNBL.

"Last year, a lot of top Australian and WNBL talent were playing and it really felt like any team could win on any night."

In August, the focus will not be on the WNBL but the FIBA Oceania Women's Championship.

The stakes could not be any higher.

The winner of the series will clinch a spot at the Rio de Janeiro Games.

Australia, who are No. 2 in the FIBA bwin World Ranking Women, are favorites as they are 20 places higher than the Tall Ferns.

If the Tall Ferns do not win that series, they will have a chance to compete in the FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

"We have a lot of talented young players in our squad with a sprinkling of veterans," Edmondson said.

"As is always the case for the Tall Ferns, every time we step on the floor, we will not be backing down and playing with a huge amount of pride and determination."

Her coach, Kennedy Kereama, certainly has lofty goals, something he explained to FIBA.com earlier this year.

As far as the years ahead, Edmondson is upbeat about the national team.

The future for the Tall Ferns does seem bright. - Edmondson

"Basketball New Zealand seems to be tipping some more money into our program which, along with the talented young players we have, bodes well for the future," she said.

Edmondson has come a long way in basketball.

She did not envision all of this when her cousins introduced her to the sport while playing on the hoop in their backyard, or when she started organized basketball at the age of 12 at the behest of her mother.

Not long after, though, and Edmondson felt she might be able to play the game at a high level.

"The first team I played was the under-13 'B' team, or second team in my hometown of Christchurch," she said.

"I was a pretty average player until I got to about 16 years old and made a junior New Zealand team and realized I might be okay at this and should focus some more of my energy on it.

"Up until that time, I was always keen to give every sport a try."

Now Edmondson, who turns 28 in May, is a leading Tall Fern.

She has logged plenty of minutes and is someone that the younger players look up to.

That will be evident when the Tall Ferns gather for their trials later this year.

FIBA