EMILY VAN Egmond is not daring to dream - just yet.
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Egmond is competing at her third Olympics in France and perhaps the last chance for the 31-year-old Novocastrian and a core group of the Matildas to return from the greatest show on earth with silverware.
The Matildas have been agonisingly close. In Tokyo 2020, they lost 1-0 to Sweden in the semi-finals before a heartbreaking 4-3 defeat to the USA in the bronze medal match.
They suffered a similar fate at the World Cup on home soil in 2023, going down 3-1 to England in the semi and falling 2-0 to Sweden in the battle for third.
The hunger - burning desire - for a medal has never been stronger.
But van Egmond is refusing to look past Friday (3am AEST) and the opening game against World No.4 Germany in Marseille - the first hurdle in a group which includes USA and Zambia.
"The Germany game is the full focus. There is no point thinking about what comes after that," van Egmond said. "We have to get a result to position ourselves in a good place to progress. We have been working hard, preparing for that game.
"We are in the group of death. No game will be easy. They all pose a completely different challenges for us.
"The first game is always exciting. You are so happy that it has finally arrived. When you hear the anthem for the first time, you know it is game on. It has officially started. As athletes, that is where you want to be."
The Matildas are ranked 12th in the world. Seven teams at the Olympics - Spain (1), France (2), Germany (4), USA (5) Japan (7), and Canada (8) and Brazil (9) - are rated higher.
But the Matildas excel in tournament play. It's part of the Australian DNA.
The 2023 World Cup and 2020 Games are testament to their ability to come together and back-up performance after performance.
"We are trying to build off the success of the World Cup," van Egmond said. "The Olympics is completely different. It is a different format. It is more intense. You don't get as many rest days between games as you do at a World Cup. For us, it's about being ready."
Van Egmond made her Olympics debut in Rio 2016, where the Matildas again suffered heartache, losing to the hosts in a penalty shootout in the quarter-final.
Nine Matildas from that squad are on deck in France.
"It may be the last time a core group of us are to play at an Olympic Games together," van Egmond said. "You never know what can happen in football. Every tournament, every time you get the chance to represent your country, you treat it like it is your last.
"We came so close last time. I know the group is really determined to get something out of it this time."
Fellow Novocastrian Clare Wheeler, 26, will be at her first Games.
One player not in Paris is Matildas captain Sam Kerr, who is recovering from a knee reconstruction after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament at a training camp with club side Chelsea in January.
Kerr made her Games debut in Rio and has been the face of the Matildas for a decade.
"I don't think you can ever replace a Sam Kerr," van Egmond said. "We have had to adapt. Everyone who has come in and had an opportunity to do a role has done that. It makes everyone step up to the plate. You can't just rely on having Sam Kerr.
"She is still interacting with the team. She is our captain."
Van Egmond's parents Gary and Annette, siblings Laura and Max and fiancee Kat Thompson are in France.
"It will be nice to have them in the stands," the midfielder said. "I was fortunate enough to go to the Rio Olympics with dad. He was in the Matildas set-up as an assistant coach. He has a good balance. He knows when to put his coach's hat on and when to be a parent."
After Germany, the Matildas tackle Zambia (July 29) and USA (August 1). The top two teams from each of the three pools and the two best third-placed teams progress to the quarter-finals.
The final will be played at Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on August 10.
"We know as a group there is a chance to walk away with something special from here," van Egmond said. "That is our ultimate goal. It is always in the back of your mind.
"For me there is not much focus on that. We need a result in the first game in order to be thinking about any kind of medal. That is where I am at with my mentality."
