"To be honest, both of them probably don't need to hear any more from me than they already do!" Langman laughs. "It's the same ball, it's the same court, nothing changes for us in terms of our weekly schedule. It's the last game of the season, so put it out there.

"In all honesty, I don't care about the outcome of the game; I care about the product that we put out there as a unit, and if it's the best that we've got and it's still not good enough on the day, you know what? That's sport, and that's what sport is all about. So they are ready, man. They are pumped, they look great, and I can't wait to see them put it out there."

Langman, one of the sport's great professionals, is always ready, her preparation immaculate, workrate exceptional. The 31-year-old was outstanding in the semi-final upset of the Vixens in Melbourne and is in peak form for the Storm-backed expansion club entering the biggest game of the season after a week's rest.

So, for a player who was 1-3 in her trans-Tasman league grand final appearances with the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic and NSW Swifts, what is preferable: the chance to freshen weary bodies and minds or to approach the summit with the type of momentum the Giants have gathered via a semi-final elimination of the Magpies and then last week's eight-goal thumping of the minor premier Vixens? "Hey, I've been in all positions on the ladder in terms of coming from fourth, having to play another game, so in all honesty it comes down to who brings it on game day."

Yet this is also one place that, even just a few years ago, Langman had not imagined she would be - playing among a foreign legion in an all-Australian domestic league under her fellow Kiwi and beloved former Magic coach Noeline Taurua. It is also her third club in three years. "Oh God, it's probably not a very good trend!" she quips. "In all honesty it's not like my personality at all - I'm a huge creature of habit ... so obviously Noels was the biggest, massive drawcard for me to come here."

It was a high-stakes choice as Langman's preference of Super Netball over the revamped league in New Zealand this year cost the Ferns vice-captain the chance to add to her 141-Test tally. That will become more of an issue in 2018, when what would be Langman's fourth Commonwealth Games beckons on the Gold Coast.

"There's no better honour than playing for your country, so obviously I need to cross that line post-grand final. Big decisions to come, but at the moment, man, I'm just enjoying the ride, and regardless of the outcome it has been the most amazing experience," she says.

"For me and my life at that point in time when I made this decision [to join the Sunshine Coast], I felt like my best opportunity to grow my game was going to be playing in the Australian league, so I'm thrilled. It hasn't been all plain sailing, we've had our lumps and bumps, but I'm thrilled with how we've gone."

In the absence of injured Giant Kim Green, only Langman's likely starting opponent - and former Swifts teammate - Susan Pettitt will have played in more grand finals than the veteran wing defence/centre and her Lightning captain Geva Mentor, a dual premiership goal keeper whose job it will be to shut down young shooter Krissie Brice.

Langman is predicting a "big defensive game", and relishing the chance to play the hybrid style favoured by Taurua, just as she's enjoyed the opportunity to build a club from what she calls "ground zero" in the only regional centre a Super Netball team calls home.

Both previous games between the grand finalists have been decided by a single goal. The Brisbane Entertainment Centre will host the next and biggest. And if it, too, is a close one, expect a certain Kiwi import to have a big say in the result.