The accolade of best junior female competitor at the world cup was taking some time to sink in.
"I think I can relate a little bit. It's a lot more real now and I feel I am ready for anything now. I have put in the work and I know that I can do it.
"I have self-belief in myself now instead of thinking it was a fluke. I proved it was not a fluke to myself and to other people."
Frances won silver in the black belt sparring with her gold coming in the black bely specialty division.
"My favourite and main event is specialty. That is the art of jumping really high. So if you take high jump for example but you put a board in the air above it, you have to kick that while you are jumping."
All her focus was on the 2017 ITF World Championships to be held in Dublin, Ireland next October, where she would defend the world title she won two years ago.
Frances said her world cup triumph had been a major step forward to her achieving her ultimate goal of being crowned world champion in Dublin.
"I have so much more learning experience because you can't get that international feel anywhere else except a world cup or a world champs. It was really good to go over there and get that extra experience.
"The officials come from all over the world and I got to see my competition for Dublin, which is really good and I am excited about that competition.
"I'm not the new girl anymore. I am so set on my goal for Dublin now because I know what I need to do."
Frances was able to compete in Hungary thanks to a $10,000 scholarship she was awarded by AMP.
"Thank you so much AMP for what you have done for me," she said.
"If it wasn't for you I wouldn't have been able to go over there and prove myself and show the world a bit of Kiwi."
Frances had plenty of school work to catch up on at Tauranga Girls' College and had given herself three weeks off to rest and recover from Hungary.
"After that it is straight back into training for Dublin."