Ameliarnne Wells

GUN shooter Ameliaranne Wells was on the verge of accepting an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship when the Firebirds snapped her up.

The late bloomer, who only started playing netball at 13, had intended to follow the more traditional developmental route when Firebirds coach Roselee Jencke gave her an unexpected chance.

"I was probably like a foot taller than everyone else, so I kind of just got recruited by my teacher that way," Wells said of her late start to the game.

"Then I just started playing with friends and stuff, so it started out as really just a social thing, but I quickly turned into loving it."

Wells, 20, caught Jencke's eye after rising through the state ranks.

The deal was sealed when Wells turned heads playing for the Queensland Fusion in the four-month ANL competition and played a starring role in the under-19 Australian Tri-Nation Championship victory against New Zealand and England.

"Rose actually called me herself the weekend before we went away for the ANL finals and I was completely blown away," Bundaberg product Wells recalls. "I didn't expect it in a million years."

Mentally, she had already packed her bags for Canberra and the AIS when the call came.

Wells described getting a crack at ANZ Championship glory with the Firebirds was a dream come true.

She said stepping into the big league was "intimidating but challenging".