While there are a few goals Christine Sinclair would like to finish before her career is over, there is one that is right there for the taking.

Sinclair, Canada’s top women’s soccer scorer, picked up her 183^rd international goal on Sunday to help the national team defeat New Zealand 3-0 in the international soccer season’s finale at the China Four Nations tournament.

That goal is a significant one as it now places Sinclair one goal behind the United State’s Abby Wambach who holds the record for more international goals at 184.  Both are in an elite group of women soccer players as only 17 have cracked the 100-goal total in their careers.

Sinclair made it a 1-0 game in the 35^th minute on a header after a cross from the right from Ashley Lawrence who had two assists in the game.  Janine Beckie scored the other two goals for Canada while goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe tied Canada’s single season record with her eighth clean sheet of the campaign.

When she was asked about the record earlier this year, Sinclair said that it would be a “relief” to break it and that she was proud of her career.

The 36-year old’s quest this year to become the greatest goal scorer in the sport’s history started earlier this year at the FIFA Women’s World Cup championships in France.  At that time, she stood four back from passing Wambach but a disappointing tournament for the Burnaby, BC native and the Canadian team did not help her standing.

Canada was eliminated in the round of 16 on a 1-0 loss to Sweden.  In four matches in France, Sinclair would manage to score just once which came in a preliminary round loss to the Netherlands.

Following the tournament, the Canadian captain was shutout in a 4-0 defeat in a friendly with Japan on October 6.

Making this an even more special time around the team is the other history that is being made.  Olivia Smith made her debut for Canada earlier in the tournament, making her the youngest player to ever play for the team at 15 years and 94 days.

For a young player like Smith to join the team at this time and watching, and learning from, a savvy veteran player like Sinclair as she chases history can only help the youngster learn what it takes to compete at the international level.

Sinclair will not get a chance at breaking the record until 2020 when Canada plays in the CONCACAF tournament looking to secure a spot at the Tokyo Olympics.

Canada drew into Group B of the CONCACAF women’s Olympic qualifying tournament where they will take on Saint Kitts and Nevis on January 29^th, Jamaica on February 1 and Mexico on February 4.  The two teams that make it to the finals of the tournament will qualify for Tokyo.