Goalkeeper Steven Hall is one of the newer members of the Subway Olyroos squad currently in Doha at the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024™.
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He said he’s been made to feel welcome right from the off and is enjoying his time in camp.
“I would kind of say I'm a new player into the U23s, my first camp was last year in October,” he said.
“I guess I’ve come to a new bunch of players that I haven't really met before, and it's been good to gel with a new bunch.”
Back in club land, Hall has made two appearances for the Brighton U21’s since he moved in January this year, and he said his time at the club has been great so far.
“First coming into the club, everyone was very welcoming, and they understood that I've come from the other side of the world,” he said.
“Their first priority was to get me settled in and they've kind of made that easier for me, so it's been really good.”
The three keepers in this Olyroos squad are all helping each other in training and they get along well away from the football pitch.
“We have a great keeper union here between Patrick Beach, Cameron Cook and myself,” he said.
“We all get along very well and training is always at a high standard, and we always push each other every day, and then off the pitch we're all great mates.”
However, Hall said this tournament is an opportunity for himself to prove his quality in goal and push to be the Olyroos number one.
He said: “I'm not here to just be participating, I want to push and be number one here.
“I think also being one of the youngest in the team, I don't want that to kind of be a burden on myself, I want show that I'm here to compete.”
He did reinforce the message that all the squad has been sharing ahead of the Asian Cup, and that is to win it.
“I think any competition that we go into, we always want to win, we always set our bar as high as we can set it,” he said.
“I think all the boys believe that we can go all the way and qualify for the Olympics, but also win this tournament.”
And for Hall, representing Australia at the Olympics would be a truly great opportunity.
“It would be a dream come true to go to the Olympics, I think it's something not everyone gets to do,” he said.
“For myself, it would just be amazing to represent my country at the Olympics.”
AFC U-23 ASIAN CUP QATAR 2024™ FINALS – GROUP A
Australia v Jordan
Monday, 15 April 2024
Kick-off: 4pm (local) / 11pm AEST
Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha
Indonesia v Australia
Thursday, 18 April 2024
Kick-off: 4pm (local) / 11pm AEST
Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha
Qatar v Australia
Sunday, 21 April 2024
Kick-off: 6:30pm (local) / 1:30am AEST (Monday, 22 April)
Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha