Matildas out to end 2017 on a high
The Matildas will chase a slice of Australian football history on Sunday in Geelong when they wrap up a two-game series with China.
A win over the side they defeated 3-0 on Wednesday in Melbourne would be the seventh straight for Alen Stajcic's side.
That would equal the all-time record for the Matildas, set in 2007, and show the promise of the team ahead of major tournaments in the next three years.
Furthermore, it will cement a place in the top five of the FIFA rankings when they are updated next month - another all-time best.
Stajcic said he wasn't focused on breaking records but maintaining a winning culture.
"Winning is very, very important and for public perception it's the most important. For us, it's more about building the things we want," he said.
"They include the type of game we want. The squad depth. The flexibility. The playing style. The belief in each other.
"They're all the things we're after rather than streaks or runs."
Stajcic said the team would look back with satisfaction on the calendar year.
"To get good results, to capture the public's imagination, get the media support, beat America, beat Brazil three times in a row ... we've achieved a lot of the objectives we wanted to this year, on and off the field," he said.
"We've laid a good platform to catapult this team and be contenders at the Asian Cup, World Cup and qualify for the Olympics."
Should the Matildas defeat China at GHMBA Stadium, they'll be matching the achievement of the 2007 team packed with some of the Matildas' biggest names; Melissa Barbieri, Cheryl Salisbury, Sarah Walsh and Collette McCallum among them.
Elise Kellond-Knight, who debuted for the national team in that year, said the current-day Matildas were "definitely" in a better place than their forebears.
"Towards the start of my career we were a good team but we weren't a great team," she said.
"We could compete against the top nations but in the last 12 months we've shown we are now progressing and can be one of the best teams in the world.
"We're high on confidence at the moment and things are ticking along perfectly."
In Geelong, Stajcic has committed to starting each of his players that didn't see minutes at the AAMI Park trouncing.
That means Lydia Williams, Kellond-Knight and Ellie Carpenter will start, as well as a 50th cap for Laura Alleway.
MATILDAS ON A ROLL: RECORD STREAKS
2007: SEVEN WINS UNDER TOM SERMANNI
New Zealand (23) 3-0 Friendly
New Zealand (23) 1-0 Friendly
Hong Kong (62) 8-1 Olympics qualifier
Chinese Taipei (28) 7-0 Olympics qualifier
China (11) 3-2 Friendly
China (11) 3-1 Friendly
Ghana (47) 4-1 World Cup
2017: SIX WINS AND COUNTING
USA (1) 1-0 Tournament of Nations
Japan (6) 4-2 Tournament of Nations
Brazil (8) 6-1 Tournament of Nations
Brazil (9) 2-1 Friendly
Brazil (9) 3-2 Friendly
China (13) 3-0 Friendly
* Number in brackets denotes world ranking at the time.
