MEGAN GORDON is a Princess who packs a punch. You might not immediately guess it to look at her, but this 17-year-old from Elgin with the matching fingernails and toenails and the day job waitressing at the Station Hotel in Rothes is in fact a highly-trained fighting machine, set to claim a notable section in this nation's sporting record books when she becomes Scotland's first-ever female Commonwealth boxer at next month's Commonwealth Youth Games in the Bahamas.

A three-time Scottish Open junior champion - Gordon would probably have more titles on her resume right now if she could find more people in her weight class worth fighting - she also benefits from some friends in high places.

Not only is her father Paul, a former boxer and boxing coach in the RAF, now her club coach at Elgin Boxing Club and one of Scottish Boxing's pool coaches, it always helps when so-called 'Princess Meg' can access a pep talk or two with both Nicola Adams and her real hero in the sport, Anthony Joshua.

"I just love Anthony Joshua, I met him when I went down for GB camp, I love watching his training, what he does and how hard he works," Gordon told Herald Sport. "It is ridiculous.

"I had a chat with him, and he is so genuine and all that, even though there were so many girls wanting a picture with him and stuff. He is absolutely huge, he made me look like a total dwarf! When you watch his training videos or on snap chat you get ideas from him.

"I have met Nicola Adams too, I think it was in 2015, down in Sheffield again," she added. "That was before she went pro or anything like that. I also went to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, our club won tickets and a lot of us went down. We were talking to Nicola Adams' mum and her brother, and hearing the actual story form the family was great. I love her too but I would probably say AJ wins!"

After years of neglect, suddenly opportunities are presenting themselves for female pugilists to turn professional. First Nicola Adams, then Katie Taylor and now Chantelle Cameron; no longer are the old barriers there in quite the same way for female boxing stars. Who knows whether Gordon too will have those opportunities in front of her one day, but refreshingly for now all she wants to talk about is the amateur, team-orientated, version of the sport. Everybody knows in any case that any professional worth their salt - say Joshua, Adams, or Scotland's own two hopefuls Josh Taylor and Charlie Flynn, both of whom took silver medals at the Commonwealth Youth Games before turning them to gold in Glasgow 2014 - usually only did so after a learning the ropes in the amateurs. Gordon, who lost the British championship on a split decision in the final, has already boxed live on TV when her bout against Welsh champion Helen Jones was screened on a digital TV channel.

"I like boxing for my country - once you turn pro you are really having to do it for yourself," said Gordon. "And I like that team element of it, how at your club you have all your team there supporting you. After the Commonwealth Games there is the main Commonwealth Games next April in the Gold Coast and I am really hoping to do that. Hopefully I should have a good opportunity for that.

"But there's so much going on for women now," she added. "Boxing Scotland didn't used to do so much for females, but now they are doing so much. I think the Commonwealth Youth games is going to inspire some little ones and hopefully our next generation will be able to match up to England and Ireland, who are at another level."

So how did a nice girl like her get into a rough old business like this? Well, as a services child, born to Merseysiders Paul and Sam, she admits she probably wouldn't be doing it right now if it wasn't for the agency of her father - even if it took her weeks and weeks of begging before he would let her start training with him. Her brother Jacob also had a short-lived boxing career and he didn't want her to waste her time.

"I was born in Scotland, I just don't really have the accent!" she says. "To tell you the truth, I think if it wasn't for my dad I don't think I would ever have got into boxing. But me and my mum went down to support everyone at the club one day and there was this young boy boxing who was probably about my age at the time so I said 'I could do that' and everyone just kind of laughed.

"I came home and I asked my dad if I could do it and he just said no straight away," she added. "I kept pestering him and he kept saying no. It took me at least two weeks for me to convince him.

"Eventually he said okay, but I would have to train with him for two weeks with him, so my fitness got better. He didn't want me just going into the club and not really knowing anything about it. So I basically trained every day with him at home for two months, and even now I am still the only female at the club. Although we will occasionally get one female, an older one, coming down for fitness."

If you think the logistics of travelling down for the pre-Games training camps in Bridgeton, Glasgow, are tough, then try finding someone to fight. Her most recent Scottish title came after a crash diet to bring her down from her usual -51kg category to -48kg just so she could find an opponent to beat. "My very first time in the ring, I ended up an exhibition even with a girl who was my age but she was basically the same weight as my dad. The girl weighed in and she was 75kg and I was 48kg, It was pretty much anything to get in the ring."

Whether it is the friends she met at her school prom on Saturday, or the other members of her family, they have all gradually come round to her career choice too. "My mum used to hate watching me box too, but now when I am ever boxing away my family all live stream it," she added. "I have a very supportive family because it is not that normal. Usually that kind of thing is the last thing your grandmother would want to see."