Australia's women's water polo team dive into uncharted waters when seeking Olympic qualification in a series against New Zealand, coach Paul Oberman says.

The Australians play the Kiwis in a best-of-three Oceania Olympic qualifying series starting in Auckland on Friday.

The winner secures a spot at next year's Paris Olympics, with the high stakes a fresh scenario for Oberman's Stingers.

"It's certainly going to be a very tough series," Oberman said.

"None of our team have ever played in a series like this, with Olympic qualification on the line ... it's very different to a normal Test match series.

"New Zealand are a tough team and they've had some very good results recently."

The Stingers finished fourth at the world championships in Fukuoka last month, a result which has buoyed Oberman and his squad.

"A fourth place in Japan just proves that we do belong amongst the names of the best teams in the world," he said.

"And it shows that we've got some very good players as well.

"Earning the Olympic quota this weekend would be the best result for us.

"It would then give us the opportunity to continue to work on our game and style, developing the things that we're good at and also building on the areas for improvement as well."

The series against New Zealand, with game two on Saturday and game three, if needed, on Sunday also brings a milestone for Australian captain Zoe Arancini, who will play her 300th international in the second fixture.

"It's a huge honour and a huge privilege to have been playing for my country for such a long time," she said.

"From when I played my first game in 2009, to now, there are so many people that have been involved in the journey and I'm extremely grateful for them.

"To be able to captain on this special occasion too ... it will be a very memorable one.

"It would be a fantastic result if we were able to secure an Olympic berth this weekend, especially a year out from Paris."