Playing for any Indigenous side is a chance to represent her family, herself and her culture.

And on June 9, the Orange Hawks and Western Rams star will get to do just that on the national rugby league stage after selection in the First Nations Gems squad for the upcoming Harvey Norman National Championships at Burleigh.

After the passing of her grandmother, Ford's selection has been an emotional journey and something she's relishing the chance to do.

"I'm extremely proud," she said.

"I'm proud to represent my culture, my people and my Nan.

"I lost my Nan last year and she was a very proud Wiradjuri woman who faced a lot of adversity in her life so I'm really doing this for her and I hope she's proud of me."

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Ford won't be the only western area talent on show at the championships, with Trangie's Jess Skinner again named coach of the Gems.

A former Western Rams coach who has made great strides as a coach, Skinner earned an assistant role with the Newcastle Knights' women's team after leading the Gems last year.

Cultural activities for the First Nations side will begin this weekend, as they connect in local Gold Coast communities and the Northern Rivers region.

With women from all over Australia and the Torres Strait Islands selected in the squad, the team will spend three days in camp before its first match on June 9 against Northern Territory.

The Championship acts as a development tournament for female players to compete at under 19s and opens level with scouts from NRLW sides and national coaches also in attendance to identify the potential recruitment target.

"There's a lot of Indigenous girls who have to relocate to play but what we offer is that girls can still stay on country and represent their mob while also be put in front of potential NRLW clubs," Skinner told NRL.com.

"It's a bit of a different pathway than what other Indigenous girls or non-indigenous girls go through, but this also offers a good development for the All Stars program and cultural identity amongst our girls from the start. We can put good foundations in place."

Dubbo's Taneka Todhunter was part of the Gems squad last year but the 2022 team will be virtually completely different.

A host of last year's players have already moved up through the ranks and after more than 90 applications were received for this season's squad, Skinner is excited to see what they can do.

"We want to do well and every team wants to win but for me as a coach I want those girls to leave with a good experience and stay passionate and motivated to keep trying to chase the dream of one day maybe being an NRLW player, or play for their country or represent the Indigenous All Stars," she said.

The grand final of the tournament will be played on June 12.

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