Banyana Banyana captain Refiloe Jane is on the verge of earning her 150th cap in national colours should she feature in the second international friendly against Japan on Tuesday morning.
The 33-year-old has been an integral part of the South African senior national women’s team since her debut in 2012. She’ll join a small group of less than a handful of players to have played for Banyana 150 times.
Janine Van Wyk retired at 185 caps, while Noko Matlou hung her international boots at 174 caps and Nompumelelo Nyandeni who also left the international stage having clocked 150 caps.
Jane’s career has seen her also go abroad playing in Australia for Canberra and to Italy where she played for AC Milan and Sassoulo women’s sides respectively.
Speaking on the eve of the match against Nadeshiko Japan, the TS Galaxy midfielder said it feels like forever and it’s a reflection of her hard work, discipline and willingness to represent her country.
“When I look at that milestone, it feels like it’s been forever, but it’s something to be grateful for,” Jane told SASOL in Sports.
“It shows the hard work, the commitment, the discipline and everything that I’ve worked hard for throughout the years in the national team. It’s not easy to get to 150 it’s not easy to get to 10. It’s not easy being here in the first place, but with the courage the discipline and the willingness to work for the nation that’s why I’m here. So, it will be nice to get that milestone and even beyond.”
Meanwhile, Banyana are looking to do better in the second encounter against the former world champions who defeated them 5-0 in Osaka on Saturday.
Jane said they knew the first match was not going to be easy and they are also focusing on the bigger picture in these games which is preparing for the upcoming Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).
“A difficult game we played in the first game we knew that it wasn’t going to be easy,” added Jane.
“They came exactly how we anticipated them to be, their level a few steps ahead of us, but we were able to hold down where we can. We were able to fight until the end. We never gave up, even though when you look at the score line, it felt like it’s a walk in the park, but it wasn’t.
“So now we have a chance to rectify our mistakes, work on our organization as a team defensively and offensively. So, we’re looking for a better match in the second game. A lot of lessons learned in the first game. I’m sure also we will take something out of the second game.
“We need to get that bigger picture. We know that we are preparing for WAFCON, which is a World Cup qualifying tournament. So, for us, it’s to make sure that in both games we take as many lessons as we can, because I think this is the final preparation for the big one, so it’s good that we’re playing these games.”
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