Banyana Banyana skipper Refiloe Jane, who aims to help SA retain the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (Wafcon) title in Morocco, has emphasised that playing for TS Galaxy doesn’t mean she now can’t deliver the goods for the national team as she did when she was playing overseas.
Refiloe Jane, 32, returned to SA to join Galaxy in March, having spent seven years abroad playing for teams such as Canberra United in Australia and AC Milan in Italy, among other teams.
“Playing at TS Galaxy doesn’t mean my role at Banyana will change. There won’t be any difference [between now and when she was playing abroad] … the hunger is still there, that will to win is still there and also the will to lead the players is still there,” Jane said.
“Fifi”, as the Banyana captain is affectionately known in football circles, admitted that they were under pressure to defend the title they won for the first time in 2022 on the same Moroccan soil. Banyana are in Group B alongside Ghana, Mali and Tanzania. They will get their campaign under way when they face Ghana next Monday in Oujda.
“The objective hasn’t changed … everyone that goes to the tournament goes there aiming to win it, so we’re not different. We have pressure to retain the title, but we are hoping we can do our level best to retain it and make SA proud,” Jane stated.
“It’s a difficult group, but there’s no easy team on the continent these days. We are hoping to set the tone with the first game against Ghana and take it from there.”
Banyana have a few youngsters in their Wafcon squad. Jane has spoken glowingly of her younger teammates, saying they were energetic. Jane also underlined the role senior players play in guiding these youngsters.
“Young players bring energy to the team. For us as senior players, we must always guide them, show them how things are done in the national team … fortunately, they’re willing to listen. What’s also nice is that these are talented players,” Jane said.
Adrielle Mibe, the 18-year-old University of Johannesburg forward, and University of the Western Cape striker Ronnel Donnelly, 21, are some of the new youngsters in the team.
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