And no definition could be more true, with the 31-year-old forward having the season of her career and she doesn’t intend on slowing down.

But Finnigan doesn’t take playing in the Women’s National Basketball League for granted and is grateful for the opportunities she has been given.

“When you get an opportunity to play you take it with two hands and run with it,” she said.

“The desire to play at the moment is not just something I take for granted.

“It means I just work twice as hard.”

Unlike most professional basketballers, Finnigan began her WNBL career at the late age of 27 when a change of coaching staff at the Perth Lynx called for open try-outs.

Finnigan took the opportunity.

Her junior career was based in Western Australia, where she began at 15 at the Rockingham Flames. She then played for several years in the Western Australian State League before finally getting her break at the Lynx.

When the situation at Perth began to disagree with Finnigan, she took up a chance opportunity that took her to the other side of the country.

“I just wanted to keep playing and (Spirit coach) Bernie (Harrower) offerred me an opportunity,” she said.

Settled in Bendigo, Finnigan has recently taken up a full-time role with the Commonwealth Bank now her teenage daughter Chloe is settled in secondary school.

And now with the Spirit, Finnigan is playing some of the best basketball of her life, and attributes that to the great team around her.

“We’re a great team, but we’re under-rated,” Finnigan said

“There have been games the league did not expect us to win.

“We’ve opened the league’s eyes to what we can achieve.”

Finnigan says the biggest tests for the Spirit are Sydney Uni and Bulleen, but she’s confident Bendigo has what it takes to be a contender in the play-offs.

“We see ourselves featuring in the play-offs,”’ she said.

“We want to be a top-three contender. Everybody stands a chance and every

body is beatable.”

The Spirit take on the Sydney Uni Flames at the Schweppes Centre tomorrow at 2pm.