We always want to play the best teams – Jane
Banyana Banyana midfielder Refiloe Jane believes playing against overseas nations will help the team grow in world football.
Refiloe Jane of South Africa ©Ryan Wilkisky/BackpagePix
This follows Safa’s announcement that the senior national women team will play Sweden in two friendlies early next year.
“It will be a big morale booster for the team, we always want to play the best teams in the world in order to grow as a nation. So that we can see how far we have come as a nation and what we need to work on in order for us to be the best,” Jane told Safa media.
Having played Sweden twice already at the 2012 London Olympics and 2016 Rio Olympics, Jane adds that the first time they played Sweden was a learning curve for them. But, they could have done much better in their second meeting in Brazil.
“Sweden is one of the best teams in the World, we have played them in the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. We lost 4-1 the first time we played them, which was an eye opener for us looking at the fact that it was the first time we played on an international stage. We could easily draw or won the game in 2016 but we lost 1-0.”
The two games will take place at the Cape Town Stadium, with the first match being played behind closed doors on January 18, while the second match will be played three days later.
