The snapshot features two-year-old Clare sitting on her father Ken's shoulders as they watch the torch relay make its way to Sydney for the 2000 Olympics.

She didn't know it at the time, but that moment was the genesis of her Olympic Football dream. In France this month, 26-year-old Clare will finally live her dream as a Matilda.

"I've had that photo with me for a while. When we have change rooms we put photos in our lockers and that one reminds me, representing Australia is a privilege," Clare says.

"In a tournament like the Olympics it's amplified. My father is going to come across so hopefully we can recreate that photo maybe with a medal.

"Uniquely for women's football, the Olympic tournament has always been a part of our schedule.

"I've always wanted to be a Matilda and go to an Asian Cup, a World Cup and an Olympics. It's always been a dream to be an Olympian."

The photo also represents the special bond Clare shares with her dad who was with her every step of her junior football career.

"It's not a unique story and so many parents put in so many hours and sacrifice for their kids to pursue their dreams, and my dad was no exception," says Clare,  who hails from Newcastle, two hours north of Sydney.

"He drove me to Sydney every second week when I was in the Emerging Jets and up to Coffs Harbour when we had northern NSW stuff going on.

"It was never a chore to him because he knew how much it meant to me and that sacrifice wasn't lost on me.

"I know I wouldn't have been able to make it to this level without that sacrifice. There's obviously a time sacrifice but a financial one as well and my Dad and wider family have been crucial to enabling me the opportunity to play football and go to nationals and everything that goes with it.

"Being together at an Olympics again, this time being an Olympian, would be really special."

Clare was introduced to football in primary school and was immediately hooked.

"It's crazy that at 10 I started and played in the under-12 girls because that's where the girls started in my local area," the midfielder says.

"I was in the same team for three years but it's much more accepted now, mixed teams and girls even start at Emerging Jets at a younger age and with clearer pathways."

By 15, Clare was playing W-League for Newcastle and later combined playing for Sydney FC with studying commerce and working in banking.

"It's always been about managing my time and even doing W-League in high school, university in Sydney then back to Newcastle for summer," she says.

"Once I finished my degree, I landed the job at Macquarie Group, so I was always managing something outside of football.

"A lot of female athletes have to do that, but I knew if I wanted to go to the next level I needed to be in an environment where I could focus more time on my football and that's why I went overseas."

The decision led her to join Danish team Fortuna Hjorring in 2021, and by 2022 she was loaned and then signed permanently with English club Everton in the Women's Super League.

Clare made her senior Matildas debut against Ireland in 2021 and scored her first international goal against the Philippines in a World Cup qualifier in Perth in 2023.

"It's hard to describe the moment when I saw the ball hit the net," she says.

"The noise was there but you have tunnel vision in that moment. It was amazing to score at home in front of a home crowd. Your first goal always stays with you and I'm really glad to have that on Aussie soil."

After a training camp in northern Spain earlier this month, Clare impressed in an Olympic warm-up game against Canada, an encouraging sign ahead of the Matildas' Olympic group matches against the US, Germany and Zambia/Morocco. 

"For me personally, it's just about taking my opportunities,” Clare says. 

“Whatever role that is, that's fine with me, and regardless of what happens in terms of game time the most important thing for me is that we achieve our goal as a team.

"We want to medal at this Olympics. The last two tournaments to come fourth makes (us even more determined) to take this opportunity."

The Matilda's open their Olympic campaign against Germany at Marseille Stadium at 2.30am (AEST) on 26 July.

Reece Homfray