With several games now under her belt after returning from injury, Piper Duck is determined to right the wrongs of their loss to Wales when the two sides face off at North Sydney Oval on Friday night.
The Wallaroos had several honest sessions following their 21-12 loss to Wales at Ballymore, and with the side set to travel down to Sydney after a big 'Test match Tuesday' session, Duck knows every day counts in a short turnaround.
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"I think we've responded really well," Duck said to reporters on Tuesday.
"It's really, really positive. We had a really solid session yesterday, going through clarity and reviewing the game.
"Reviewing it again today, we've got Test Match Tuesday, which is going to be really critical for us, especially heading into Friday with that quick turnaround.
"We had a really honest session around reviewing the game and what worked, what didn't work, and really taking accountability in that aspect both from a coaching point of view but also from a playing point of view and what we can do there individually.
"We have our mental skills coach with us, David King. We had a really constructive session around, again, a similar conversation around that honesty piece towards one another, each other, about how we can take individual accountability and around how we can grow further, but also how as a collective, how we can support each other to get the most out of this game."
The Wallaroos find themselves in a similar position to last year - which saw the side bounce back strongly after a 31-24 loss to Wales to claim the WXV 2 title.
However, Duck doesn't believe the loss could be a blessing in disguise to fire the squad into action on the eve of the World Cup - with a result only as good as the next match.
"Yes and no," Duck replied when asked about whether this result could be a positive for the side.
"I think it can be. I think everything is around how you view things, right? It's whether you view a cup half empty or a cup half full.
"The way you can look at it is extremely important … off the back of this, yes it's obviously hard getting a loss. But I feel really confident in what we're creating and what we're doing and I think something like this is one of those pieces where if you always win, you don't learn as much.
"By going through what we've went through, I think we have learnt a lot about ourselves, but also as a team as well. I'm extremely excited to see what we put out on Friday but even more so, I'm really excited to see what this World Cup holds for us because as a group.
"We are extremely talented and we really have been putting in the work and we just hope that we can really show the country what we've been doing."
Duck will be aiming to maintain her position in the starting 23, with hopes of going even harder to push for a starting spot.
While she is still taking precautions with her AC joints, she is excited to push herself harder into Jo Yapp's World Cup calculations.
"I'm raring and ready to go," Duck said.
"I'm doing really well. It's just proportionate now. Like anything, we call it prehab rather than rehab.
"Prehab is really important to obviously mitigate any injuries. So, yeah, we're fighting fit. A lot of other girls are in the same way.
"Everyone's ready to go. I'm also hissing for Friday and it's just managing in the prehab kind of thing just to make sure that when we hit that paddock flying, we're in the best shape possible to be going forward."
Wales will be searching for an historic series sealing victory as they wrap up their maiden tour of Australia - which would serve as a perfect bounce back for their World Cup preparations after a winless Six Nations.
However, with the Wallaroos set to face Samoa in their first World Cup match in just over three weeks time, Duck knows there is a lot riding on this game - not the least of which, the final chance for fans to see the Wallaroos play on home soil for the year.
It even comes with a personal element - with many the teams' friends and family expected to also attend.
"It means everything," said Duck.
"Getting to have my family there in the stands watching me, I think other girls would feel the same. Having those fans back home too, it's so incredibly important.
"They're our biggest support crew, our biggest supporters. Having them there, I don't think I can really do it justice. It means a lot to me to be able to look up into the stand and see the people that matter to me, the people that are so important to me as well.
"I'm hopefully going to have a good support crew out there in Sydney. I'm sure if I'm playing or if I'm not playing, I know I will.
"I think it's the perfect time for us to have this game.
"It's going to be a really competitive in Sydney, especially before heading into this World Cup before we fly out."
