But this weekend the 27-year-old wing will make her first start at the 2021 Rugby World Cup after being selected for the quarter-final clash with host nation New Zealand.
It will be a ‘pinch-me’ moment for Norkett when she earns her fourth cap to go level with her sister, who was tragically killed in a car accident in five years ago.
“Eight years ago, I was sat in the stand as a 19-year-old watching my sister, Elli, play in the World Cup in Paris and feeling very proud. Now I’ve got the chance to start and I know she would be very proud of me so it’s a dream come true,” said the former Morriston Comprehensive teacher.
“My parents were here for the Scotland game but have had to return to Wales now so they’ve arranged a big breakfast viewing party for the whole family.”
Norkett is excited to test herself against the current world champions.
“It’s a great opportunity to play against the best in the world and I can’t wait to take the pitch with the rest of the Welsh team. After featuring off the bench in the win over Scotland, having an opportunity to start is amazing.
“We have got a different edge now we’ve got Jazz (Joyce) at full back. She is a super strength for us and so quick and then there are me and Lisa (Neumann) on the wings with more physicality. It will be great to see how we go as a back three.”
Norkett came on for the breathtaking final minutes of the opening game against Scotland, when Wales won with the last kick of the match thanks to a strong period of pressure from Wales and a penalty from Keira Bevan, but didn’t appear in the matchday squads for the defeats to New Zealand and Australia.
Head coach Ioan Cunningham has now given her a big chance to prove her worth in the biggest game of her life.
“It’s incredible we are in the quarter-finals. We had a narrow loss to Australia but we have learned a lot of lessons from that game and we’ve also learned from the last time we played the Black Ferns,” added Norkett.
“We created a lot of opportunities in the score zone against them and we have been working a lot this week on our execution. We’ve been building and learned more against Australia.
“There is a lot of heart in this team and we don’t go into any game scared. We have a strong mentality, we’re so much fitter than we were and we want to leave everything on the pitch tomorrow.”
Watch Wales take on New Zealand live from 7.15am Saturday on ITV 1 and on S4C’s online platforms
