AFTER appearing at five Olympic Games, you could forgive Alison Williamson for putting all her eggs in the individual basket ahead of London 2012.

But the veteran Stafford archer insists it’s the team event that is dominating her mind in the lead-up to the London event

The 40-year-old’s career already spans two decades, the highlight coming at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, where she won individual bronze.

The Games will be William-son’s sixth attempt to climb the top step of the podium, but rather than focus on herself she is determined to put an end to her nightmare run as part of Team GB.

In Beijing in 2008, Williamson and Co missed out on Olympic bronze by just two points, and were pipped to the gold at last year’s Commonwealth Games by India.

Her unlucky streak continued last month at the Olympic test event in London when Williamson, Amy Oliver and Naomi Folkard beat world champions Italy in the first round ... but then lost to Japan to finish fourth.

But the near misses have made Williamson all the more determined to put the record straight ... and she believes there is no better time than at a home Games.

“If we were all being honest, all of us in the women’s team would say that it is the team event that we most want to win,” said Williamson.

“That’s not to say I won’t be working hard for solo gold – of course I will – but after what we have been through I think we deserve a bit of luck.

“We have had some pretty galling near misses in the past, and it continued at the test event last month.

“If we finished fourth at London 2012 it would be arguably the worst place to finish, so perhaps it is a good thing that we have got it out of our system.

“The signs are there, and if we just work that little bit harder I think we can get that long-awaited gold.”

However, Williamson is taking nothing for granted after enduring a mixed 2011 in which she won the European Grand Prix in Turkey, but failed to qualify for the World Cup Grand Finals in Istanbul.

And after exiting the individual Olympic test event in the second round, Williamson knows she can’t take her eye off the target just yet.

“Although I have been to five Olympics, I am not taking anything for granted,” she added.

“Everyone is working hard to make the team, but as there are more people than places available, I am certainly not about to count my chickens too soon.

“We are working hard every week to put our team nightmares to bed and I want to make sure I am part of it when it all happens.”

BEN BAKER