The 28-year-old thinks that Northern Ireland will be able to cope with the searing heat in Malta, with temperatures of 29C expected at kick-off.
“We’re not shy to these conditions after the games away against Portugal and Bosnia & Herzegovina, it’s not something entirely new,” she said.
Rafferty, who recently joined Rangers from Southampton, also insists that Northern Ireland have learnt their lessons from mistakes made in recent defeats against Portugal in the last international window.
Oxtoby’s side lost 4-0 in Leiria before narrowly being edged out 2-1 by the Portuguese at Mourneview Park.
The defender is hopeful that the positive performances despite losing both games will give NI confidence ahead of their game at the Centenary Stadium.
“We’ve taken a lot of lessons from the Portugal games; they were another progression of what we’ve been building.
“It’s been a positive week and we’re looking forward to putting the work in to get a result.”