The year 12 John McGlashan College pupil has been picked in the New Zealand under-18 league team to play two test matches against the Australian schoolboys across the ditch.
Coached by Rod Ratu, the Kiwis will play the first match at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on September 27 and the second in Wynnum on October 2.
Ferguson, who is originally from Milton but has boarded at John McGlashan since year 9, is the only South Islander in the 19-strong squad.
''It's pretty exciting,'' he said.
''I was waiting pretty nervously on Monday night for that phone call and it came.''
It is not the first time Ferguson has been named in a national team.
He captained the New Zealand under-16 team against Samoa in the curtainraiser to the Kiwis v Samoa Four Nations test in Whangarei last November.
He scored two tries in the 32-26 win and was named man of the match, a performance which saw coach Jeff Whittaker compare Ferguson with Kiwis and New Zealand Warriors captain Simon Mannering.
When asked about Whittaker's comments yesterday, Ferguson put it down to the fact he played a similar style to Mannering.
The comparison has caught on and Ferguson's team-mates now call him ''Simon''.
Ferguson spent some time with Mannering and Kiwis coach Stephen Kearney in Whangarei, and again when the Kiwis were in Dunedin to play England in the Four Nations in November.
''Simon Mannering has been pretty good to me,'' he said.
''We're on a first-name basis. He's a pretty respectable guy. He has got plenty of time for anyone.''
Ferguson was selected in the team despite playing little rugby league this season. That is because he was busy captaining the John McGlashan College First XV to an Otago premier schools title.
Ferguson played as a flanker for the side and scored a try in the final against South Otago High School.
He did head north for a four-day training camp which Kearney attended, and did enough to get the call up.
''To make the team was my goal for a start,'' he said.
''From here, I will keep aiming to get a starting position in the team.''
Ferguson is expecting a tough challenge from Australia, a team which includes former New Zealand Warriors player and coach Ivan Cleary's son, Nathan. Next Wednesday he leaves for Auckland, where the team will train for a few days before heading to Brisbane.
Ferguson will be eligible to play for the under-18s again next year, and has ambitions to continue playing both codes.
