Jones dreaming of becoming Bermuda's first female to join the pro ranks.

The women's game is booming in the United States and Jones, a college student at St. Thomas University in Miami, knows that the spin-off from a successful World Cup -- currently being played in the States -- could result in the launching of a pro league next year.

The popularity of the sport is reflected by its 30 million players worldwide.

Jones will enter her senior year at St. Thomas where she is a Crime and Child Psychology major. She has been at the university for the past two years where she now plays as a sweeper, having spent most of her soccer career as striker.

She was recruited by St. Thomas for softball, having played the sport for two years at Hillsborough Community College in Tampa. But she was soon convinced by coach Mohammed Azir, whom she credits with taking her game to a new level, to play for the soccer team.

"Nicole is the type of player that every coach dreams of having,'' said the team's present head coach, John Vassiliou during a recent article in the Miami-published Caribbean Today newspaper.

"She is a smart and fast player who rarely makes mistakes on the field. But more important than anything, she loves the game and that inspires the team to play at its best.'' Last year Jones helped her team finish ninth in the nation among 250 teams and with that came the opportunity to host the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national women's tournament this year.

The sport is played by millions of girls and women in the US. And a crowd of 79,000 watched the United States' opening World Cup match against Denmark.

Now with the launching of a pro league being discussed, Jones has set her sights on being one of the first recruits. Last summer she played semi-pro with the Miami Gliders and says she's ready to play at a higher level.

"My old coach Mohammed Azir who now works with the US under-16 team thinks so,'' said Jones. "I think I have a shot, going by what my coaches have said.

"At the end of every season they pick two elite players from each conference, who have to be seniors, and they go through a process of training. "They get to play against the US team and if the professional league starts up next year those players will be part of the pool. I'm hoping to be one of those.'' Jones has football in her blood, having started showing an interest in the game at the tender age of two.

Her uncle, former Bermuda international Fred (Pinks) Lewis, gave her some early lessons in ball control and she later graduated to playing in junior teams with the boys from Social Club and BAA.

Jones got involved in other sports too, like softball and basketball, and even played for Bermuda's national softball team. But soccer remains her first love.

The former BAA Telecom player says that while there are some talented female players in Bermuda, the progress made by the women's league here pales in comparison to what she has seen in the States.

"There, there are girls playing at the Mini Minor and Minor age groups like the boys do in Bermuda,'' said Jones.

"They start playing in primary school. It's a far cry from what we have down here. Women's soccer out there is so big. "They eat, drink and sleep soccer all year round in Miami. Soccer out there is constant, league after league.

You are allowed 25 players on your roster but some of those teams have 30-35 players.'' Jones believes she has outgrown the game in Bermuda, though one day she would like to return with coaching qualifications, hoping to coach one of the women's teams here.

"When I started down here if you played you were a tom boy, but now girls who play don't have mannish ways but they play the game hard. And when they get off and put on their dresses or skirts you wouldn't even know they played soccer.'' Nicole Jones: dreaming of joining a professional league.