Centurion Kellond-Knight reveals her 'immense pride'

Elise Kellond-Knight expressed her 'immense pride' after becoming only the seventh Westfield Matilda in history to reach 100 caps for the Green and Gold.

The 28-year-old provided the vital assist for Clare Polkinghorne's 84th-minute header to earn the Westfield Matildas a hard-fought 1-1 draw with England's Lionesses on Wednesday morning.

After the Westfield Matildas fought back to round off their European tour with a draw at Craven Cottage in London, Kellond-Knight was beaming at achieving such a significant milestone.

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Originally from Southport, Kellond-Knight's career has taken her across the world in the form of club and international football. Yet, 100 international games later, each cap still means just as much to her.

"Wow, it's a good feeling," said Kellond-Knight. 

"It's a sign of how much dedication I've had to the game and how much commitment I've had.

"[I feel] immense pride to be able to put on the jersey 100 times."

"Every time I do it it's a special feeling an a unique experience."

Kellond-Knight heaped praise on Phil Neville's women, who enjoyed the majority of possession and created a tough test for a youthful Westfield Matildas outfit.

"It was actually a pretty enjoyable game," said Kellond-Knight. 

"The English tried to play a nice style of football, which was good - a shorter passing game than maybe what they're used to playing. 

"Under Neville they're trying to play that clever type of football which is actually the style I like to play, and it was an enjoyable game to play a part in."

With the FIFA World Cup less than eight months away, this was a key fixture in the Westfield Matildas' preparations to test themselves against the world's best in France.

Kellond-Knight was quick to praise her youthful teammates who clocked some vital hours and 'enormous' experience in the past two fixtures. 

"To give these players without so much experience these big opportunities against big teams, it doesn't come around often. 

"I think it was a really important step in our progress to France."

Polkinghorne: We've learnt lessons, but need to improve

Goalscorer Clare Polkinghorne says the Westfield Matildas have learnt a lot from their past two fixtures against some of the world's best.

As England appeared set to clinch victory, the 29-year-old from Brisbane climbed highest from Kellond-Knight's corner to salvage a result. 

"We've learnt so much coming here. The game against France and against England," said Polkinghorne. 

"There are so many lessons that can be learnt, important lessons you need to learn from to take into the World Cup next year."

Polkinghorne noted that, although there is still room for improvement in the team's overall performance, she believes Alen Stajcic's team is on the right track.

"We're a bit disappointed in the performance again. We just gave away the ball too easily, and as soon as we won it back, it was turned back over," said Polkinghorne. 

"We have a lot to work on, but the guts and character the team has shown in the last couple of games is something we can really build on."