Defender Ellie Carpenter says the Matildas will give it their all to succeed as they make a historic debut at the SheBelieves Cup in the United States. The Olympique Lyonnais star spoke to the media today ahead of Australia beginning its campaign against Japan.
Ellie Carpenter in action for the Matildas against Brazil back in November. (Image: Richard Haines Photography)
Ellie Carpenter has explained that while the Matildas see their upcoming SheBelieves Cup debut as ideal preparation for the AFC Women's Asian Cup in 2026, the squad will still go all out to win every game and achieve successful results.
Australia will face Japan, the United States, and Colombia over the international break in a round-robin style format, with the team that finishes top of the group after all three matchdays winning the SheBelieves Cup.
"You're not going into any game wanting to lose; you always want to win. These three games are very challenging, all very different opposition," Carpenter told reporters today.
"I know all the girls; every time we play for our country, we give it our all, and we want to win for our country, of course, and we'll be planning to do that and come out with the best way to approach games with different tactics."
If Carpenter's words are anything to go by, then we may see Matildas Interim Head Coach Tom Sermanni instil varied tactical plans for each game at the tournament. Another intriguing subplot to watch over the three games will be the potential international debuts of A-League Women prospects such as Laini Freier and Alana Murphy, as Sermanni again opted in his squad selection to open up the international pathway for players thriving at their clubs domestically.
Carpenter looks forward to seeing how the new faces adapt to the national team environment.
"It's very exciting when we have young blood come in. Obviously, they've deserved the call-up, and it's very exciting to see them, how they integrate within the national team and the international stage because it is so different to the A-League and domestic leagues," she said.
"But every young girl has come in and performed, and they can tell that they're up to the task, so I'm very excited because I think we're now seeing the new generation come through with Australian football, and I think it's great where we get more young ones in, and they can have a taste of what it's like."
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Carpenter is undoubtedly in an ideal position to speak well of what it's like adapting to the Matildas environment at a young age, having notably, now almost nine years ago, made her international debut at only 15.
Now 24, with almost 100 caps under her belt and having played at many big tournaments, she is arguably one of this squad's more experienced and senior figures despite still having plenty of room to develop herself. But she was once in the position Freier and Murphy are in now - albeit at a much younger age - and explained what allows new Matildas to adapt quickly.
"I think the environment really sets it up for them to thrive, for them to be comfortable on the pitch, and you can see that when we have debuts, you can see how confident they are," Carpenter said.
"After a few camps or a couple of months in the team, they know the expectation of what it means to be a Matilda and how to perform and come into a high-performance environment, so it's really great to see them thrive."
Carpenter and the Matildas will begin their SheBelieves Cup campaign on Friday morning Australian time at 9 am AEDT against Japan, live on Paramount+.
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