Emily van Egmond is "buzzing" on the eve of FIFA Women's World Cup on home soil and believes the Matildas have the game-changers and the depth for a shot at glory.
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The 30-year-old Novocastrian is one of the most experienced players in Tony Gustavsson's 23-player squad, which opens their Cup campaign against Republic of Ireland at a sold-out Stadium Australia on Thursday night.
The Matildas will carry the weight of a nation with them and van Egmond is sure to play a key role as the fifth most-capped Matilda of all time with 128 appearances for her country.
Australia have never progressed further than the quarter-finals at a Women's World Cup, and bowed out on penalties in the round of 16 four years ago in France.
But the reliable box-to-box midfielder believes they are well-placed for a breakthrough performance.
"We're in good form at the moment," van Egmond said.
"We've got a lot of game-changers. We've got a lot of depth. We've got a fantastic squad and I'm extremely excited to see what the team can do."
The Dudley Redhead United junior was thrilled to put an injury-plagued few months behind her with a solid 30-minute effort off the bench as the Matildas finalised preparations with a 1-0 win over world No.5 France in Melbourne last Friday night.
The "send-off" match was played in front of a heaving 50,629 spectators at Marvel Stadium - a record home crowd for a stand-alone Australian women's football match.
It was a taste of what is to come on Thursday night, when around 80,000 people are expected to be in attendance.
"It was great," van Egmond said of the France friendly.
"The girls have been together now for the past four weeks putting in huge amounts of hard work.
"So, to end that pre-camp vibe with an international friendly against a quality opposition like France, is really good, and to get the outcome we wanted gives us huge momentum going into the tournament."
The Newcastle Jets product plays for San Diego Wave in the National Women's Soccer League but had played minimal match minutes since mid-April due to a back complaint.
"Amazing, especially in front of a sell-out crowd in Melbourne," van Egmond said after her encouraging effort against France.
"Personally, for myself, I was buzzing, and to top it off with a win, I couldn't have asked for a better comeback."
Van Egmond has played at the 2011 (Germany), 2015 (Canada) and 2019 (France) FIFA Women's World Cups.
After Ireland, the Matildas face Nigeria (July 27) in Brisbane then Canada (July 31) in Melbourne with the top two teams from each group progressing to the round of 16.
Australia have won nine of their past 10 outings, which have included victories over other world top-10 ranked nations England and Spain.
"[It was a] big result for us heading into the tournament," van Egmond said.
"We just need to take that confidence now and believe in the journey that we're about to embark on.
"I think those results speak for themselves and they're opposition that are in the top 10. But it's just taking one game at a time.
"We've got Ireland first, so just focusing on ourselves and looking to get a result in that first game."
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Renee Valentine
Renee Valentine is a sports journalist with more than 20 years of experience in Newcastle. She is passionate about increasing the visibility of sportswomen in the media. Got a sports story, email Renee at r.valentine@newcastleherald.com.au
Renee Valentine is a sports journalist with more than 20 years of experience in Newcastle. She is passionate about increasing the visibility of sportswomen in the media. Got a sports story, email Renee at r.valentine@newcastleherald.com.au
