Garriock to be youngest Australian to 100 caps

Matildas midfielder Heather Garriock is set to become the youngest Australian soccer player, man or woman, to reach 100 caps in tomorrow’s friendly with all-powerful USA.

The 25-year-old said, while it was a great honour, the milestone was the furthest thing from her mind going into the clash in Cary, North Carolina.

“I haven’t really thought about the 100th cap,” said Garriock, who will join team-mates Cheryl Salisbury and Joanne Peters, and retired defender Anissa Tann, in the century club.

“I’m more focused on creating history by beating the Yanks to be honest.”

The Matildas have never beaten the Americans in 18 encounters, losing 16 times.

There have, however, been two draws in the last three meetings between the two nations.

Australia will be using the match as a tune-up for the Asian Cup in Vietnam from May 28 to June 8, having failed to qualify for the Olympics.

Athens gold-medallists USA will be out to build on the momentum they gained from winning the 12-nation Algarve Cup as they prepare for Beijing.

“Motivation to beat the US is always there,” said Garriock, who described missing the Olympics as one of the lowest points of her career.

“How we go against America will give us quite a good guide to see where we’re at.

“This is the start of preparations for the Asian Cup.

“We haven’t had many internationals since the World Cup so this is a re-building phase.”

Tomorrow’s friendly, which has attracted a sell-out crowd of about 7,000 at WakeMed Soccer Park, will be the first of two between Australia and the USA over the next week.

The second match will be next Sunday (AEST) at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama.

Garriock will travel to Denmark and back between the two matches to represent her new club side Fortuna Hjorring.

The Sydney-sider said her move to the Danish club had taken her to another level as a player.

“I’ve over-achieved in Denmark - I’ve scored eight goals in eight games - I think the club’s fairly happy with me,” Garriock said.

“It’s been a huge challenge and it’s probably been the best thing for my football career. It’s been phenomenal and I’m probably in the best form I’ve been in for a long time.

“The standard is extremely high. I train six days a week with eight or nine national team players. The training is very physical and very intense at the same time. There’s no time for chilling out on the left wing.”

Meanwhile, Football Federation Australia have announced the Matildas will play Canada as part of a double-header at the SFS on May 23, before the Socceroos face African powerhouse Ghana.

The Matildas defeated Canada in injury time to qualify for last year’s World Cup quarter-finals in arguably the most dramatic moment in the history of the Australian women’s game.

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