MARIAH Williams wants to ride the high of a World Cup medal into Birmingham, but knows the Hockeyroos need to be at their best if they want another podium finish.
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The Souths striker arrives at her maiden Commonwealth Games fresh from claiming a career-best bronze at the international tournament, which wrapped up in Spain last week.
It means the Aussie women's squad have a "very unique" opportunity to collect prizes from two major competitions within the space of two months.
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"Obviously there's a lot of positives to take out of the World Cup, going into the Commonwealth Games. We are definitely going to ride that momentum," Williams told the Newcastle Herald.
"But we still have to stick to our processes and make sure we get everything right. It's elite sport and anything can happen. We've just got to make sure we're prepared.
"At the end of the day we're certainly keen to win a medal and be on the podium at the Commonwealth Games."
Williams says she "appreciated" a small break in between playing commitments, giving her a chance to "refresh physically and mentally" before it's "full steam ahead" in the English midlands.
The Hockeyroos arrived in Birmingham on the weekend and start their campaign against Kenya on Sunday (2:30am, AEST).
South Africa, New Zealand and Scotland also await the Aussies in the group stages.
"We know we did well in this tournament [World Cup], but can't rely on those results to do well at Commonwealth Games. We've still got to work really hard," the Hunter Sports High School graduate said.
"India beat us at the Olympics last year, New Zealand is always a tough game and England give us a run for our money. South Africa as well, we struggled here at the World Cup and only won 2-1."
The 27-year-old, who debuted in 2013, has missed the previous two Commonwealth Games with injury.
A two-time Olympian who originally hails from the central NSW town of Parkes, Williams recently notched up her 100th Test cap.
"It was an incredible and humbling experience. Getting to do it in NAIDOC Week as well as wearing the Indigenous uniform, being a proud Wiradjuri woman it hit a little bit closer to home," she said.
Williams has previously collected an Oceania Cup gold, Pro League silver and World League bronze, but now says her World Cup honour is the "main medal".
The Hockeyroos, who defeated Germany 2-1 in the recent play-off for third, only lost one game at both the World Cup (SF v Netherlands) and last year's Olympics (QF v India).
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