#YourStory – Lauren an inspiration to footballers

Lauren Duncan, the Janine van Wyk (JvW) Girl Football Development’s Project Manager, said being down at the soccer fields almost every day grew her passion for the sport. Before she knew it, she was assisting coaches in the junior boys’ teams.

“I then became a qualified referee, where I officiated boys matches at the Edenvale Football Club. I was involved as a coach for Girlsport, a girls soccer programme which was run by Tracy Pepper who is now the Alex United Head Coach. As I got older, I joined an amateur team and played local football, and made the Easterns team for girls before joining the Primrose-based club, Luso Africa,” Lauren said.

While playing for Luso Africa, the team was promoted to the Sasol League after just a year of playing in the Regional League. She said playing alongside Janine van Wyk at Luso Africa and sharing similar ideas about the growth of the women’s game and their experiences, they decided to start a girls football development programme.

“We wanted a programme that would provide a platform for girls to reach their goals in the sport. In 2012, we kicked off the programme with the launch of a High School League which ran in the Ekurhuleni Region.

“After selecting a team of the best girls in the league, we realised that these talented young girls were uneducated on where to go to further themselves in the sport. We needed to do something about this. In 2013 we bought a Sasol League Franchise (JVW FC). We recruited girls out of the schools league and into a club football programme,” said Lauren.

The programme started with 16 girls in the JVW Stars Team (Schools select team) and a few experienced girls from around the area, playing together with Janine.

They completed their first year in the Sasol League by finishing in 11th position. Since 2013, the club structure and Schools League have both trebled in size.

“When we started the programme, my role was to assist with the management of the team and club, as well as the general administration of the schools league. I was playing for JVW at the same time. This became a hectic task, so I decided to stop playing and focus solely on assisting with the growth the Brand.

“Although I missed playing, my love for the women’s game grew even more and I wanted to play a big part in assisting girls in reaching the next level. My dream was to get to the National Team (by playing), but I just never thought I was good enough. I was satisfied with playing amateur football at the time. Only when I grew older did I realise how badly I actually wanted it,” said Lauren.

She continued to work hard and did her part to grow the development structure, along with the assistance and guidance from Janine. Her passion for the game paid off when she was appointed Team Manager of the Women’s U/20 National Team for their World Cup Qualifiers in 2015.

“This was such an honour. Although I didn’t make it to the next level as a player, I certainly felt privileged to be called up to national level as part of the staff. I have so much passion for the game that I never stop learning and educating myself on all aspects of the women’s game. I hope that soon we will have a professional women’s league in South Africa where I can further my career in this specific field.