Even through the most gruelling days of her battle with cancer, Rebekah Stott never once doubted she'd eventually wear the white jersey of the Football Ferns again.
Less than a year after her diagnosis with Stage 3 Hodgkin Lymphoma, Stott's unwavering belief has become reality, with inclusion in the 23-strong national squad to contest the aptly named SheBelieve Cup in the United States later this month.
"I never thought I wouldn't play again and I wouldn't be playing for the Ferns again," Stott tells Newshub. "I always believed that I would.
"I definitely did have some dark days and it was really hard, especially the three months after treatment. It was mentally, really tough, but it was always in my mind that I'd be playing for the Ferns again and I'm just so happy that it's just around the corner."
Until her diagnosis in February 2021, Stott had been a regular in the Football Ferns starting XI, where she was the cornerstone of the team's defence through 71 international appearances.
But after her diagnosis, at just 27 years old, football became an afterthought.
Stott promptly left England, where she was playing for Women's Super League side Brighton & Hove Albion, and returned to Australia for treatment.
By July, after three months of chemotherapy, Stott's cancer was in complete remission and she began her journey back to the pitch.
Just a month later, she signed up for a third stint with A-League Women's side Melbourne City. She made her onfield return in December, setting a club record for all-time appearances.
"To think I was just being diagnosed this time last year and everything I went through," she reflects. "I know I'm still building and I'm still growing, but to think when I was diagnosed, I've just come so far and I've overcome it.
"It's pretty incredible. "It was definitely a long, hard journey back, but I'm here now."
During a whirlwind year for the Papamoa product, she admits her path back to full-time football required a huge dose of patience, as she waited for her body to catch up to her enthusiasm.
"The support around me was so helpful and everyone was there for me, but I had to not have too many expectations," she says. "I was like, 'as soon as I'm done with treatment, I'll be back playing', but it wasn't like that - I really had to wait for my body to be okay to do that.
"Only a few months ago, I got my first period since being on treatment and that changed my body in itself. I had so much more energy after that and that was six months after I'd finished treatment."
Recently given the all clear on her six-month check-up, Stott has regained match fitness, and is primed and ready to lend her valuable veteran presence to the Football Ferns, when they face Iceland, Czech Republic and hosts USA.
"It's going to be incredible," she says with a grin. "It's definitely one of the highlights of my career, playing for the Ferns, so it's always so special and I'm just so excited.
"It's such an amazing honour."
Absent from the Ferns since the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, she's eager to return to work under new coach Jitka Klimkova, as they continue their build-up to the Cup on home soil next year.
Klimkova is equally excited for the injection she'll bring to her squad.
"There are a lot of emotions," says Klimkova. "There is a lot of happiness for us that she is where she is right now, and she's playing, and she's performing, and she's coming back to international football.
"It just shows her strong personality and her mentality. Just talking about it I have got goosebumps all over me. It's really beyond football.
"She went through a really tough time, but her mentality definitely helped her to be where she is right now, and I am so impressed with her."
Stott has been encouraged by the team's progress on their recent tour to Canada and South Korea, where they managed a morale-boosting win over the Koreans.
'"[Klimkova] is really cool. I've had a few chats with her, and I'm just so excited to start working and learning from her.
"The team played really well against Korea and got a good result over there, so I think we just need to build on that."
Stott will likely make her international return, when the Football Ferns take on Iceland in the SheBelieves Cup opener on February 17.
