RACHEL Brown is targeting a medal as the Great Britain women’s football team prepare to kick off their Olympic campaign against New Zealand this afternoon.

The opening ceremony may still be two days away but all 12 countries in the women’s football play their first matches today, with Great Britain taking on New Zealand in their opening group game at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium at 4pm.

Burnley’s Brown is competing with Karen Bardsley for the goalkeeper’s jersey and believes Great Britain, aided by home advantage, should be targeting a medal at the Olympics.

“The goal for any Olympian going to London 2012 is to win a medal,” said the 32-year-old, who started her career with Accrington Stanley Ladies and now plays for Everton.

“It’s like going into a World Cup – we are going to set our expectations high, we are on home soil and that can do nothing but help.

“We are quite familiar with the teams we are coming up against and the other teams in the competition because every other nation’s women’s football team plays in the Olympics on a regular basis.

“We will have lots of video footage to help preparations.”

The Great Britain team will be making their first ever appearance in the Olympics, with women’s football only introduced in Atlanta in 1996.

Brown was actually a ball girl for that competition after travelling to the United States for some coaching after her GCSEs.

The experienced England international admitted she was ‘stunned’ when she received the call-up to Great Britain’s 18-strong squad for the Olympics, but it is now starting to hit home just how big an event she will be involved in.

“It’s only kind of really sinking in now,” she said.

“It’s something until a few months ago we didn’t even know was an opportunity that existed.

“The Olympics is a brilliant platform for promoting the women’s game.

“With any major tournament there has always been an upsurge in media coverage.

“Obviously it’s a whole new level with the tournament being in this country so we are hoping it will bring back loads more interest.

“Access to the matches at the Olympics is great with stadiums of 60,000 to 70,000 so hopefully we can get those stadiums full and get families coming to watch the games.”

Today’s game against New Zealand will be shown live on BBC One.