AFLW draft prospect Lily Paterson doesn’t come from a footy-mad family.

The Swans Districts midfielder was born in Australia to Scottish parents and didn’t grow up playing Australian Rules, introduced to the sport by friends at school.

It was never the plan to take it too seriously, in fact, she initially wasn’t too keen on joining the WAFL club. Now, the 18-year-old is a fixture at Bassendean Oval and is on the verge of making football her full-time career.

Paterson is one of the state’s top prospects ahead of the AFLW draft on Monday, with West Coast and Fremantle among 14 clubs interested in the Swans product.

It’s a remarkable rise for Paterson, who was overlooked by state selectors for the summer academy but dominated the WAFLW season to get a call-up for Western Australia in the U18 state championships.

She would go on to be the state’s top ball-winner, catching the eye of AFLW clubs across the country to earn an invite to the national combine in October.

While some would find it an overwhelming the laid back teenager has taken it all in her stride.

“I find that I’m quite a calm person don’t really get too stressed and anxious about many things in life and everything that’s meant to be will be,” she said.

“I just want to enjoy every experience because you might not ever experience this again in your life.”

Paterson is grateful to her parents who never put pressure on her but were super supportive of her dreams.

“They don’t know much about footy,” she said. “I’m new to it and so are they so they’re still getting their head around it.”

“It’s really good, you get some parents on the sidelines who are yelling at their kids but my parents are just there for the vibes.”

Despite the attention she has garnered over the past few months Paterson still sees herself as the “underdog” - a term she’s become fond of.

“That’s kind of what I see myself as,” she said.

“No one knew who I was, no one saw me as a good footballer until this year. People still question me. It’s just good that I don’t question myself and I know what I’m capable of.”

Paterson said flying under the radar compared to some of her state teammates has only motivated her to work harder.

“It’s been really good because you don’t have the pressures of expectation but at the same time, you might have people doubting you and not seeing your potential,” she said.

“You probably don’t get the same opportunities to grow but I think that just built resilience and made me work harder.”

Paterson said her rapid improvement has come from putting in the work which in turn boosted her confidence.

“I’ve put in a lot of hard work over the off-season and my confidence grew because I knew how much work I was putting in,

“In my brain, I was like no one’s working harder than me I know what I can do, it’s just a case of showing it.”

Paterson said she doesn’t think there is a ceiling on what she can achieve if she gets the opportunity, saying what she’s shown this year is just a “sneak peek” of what she’s capable of.

“I’m such a hard worker, I’ll always be pushing myself and I’ll never stop,” she said.

“All those things combined I just see it as the sky’s the limit.”