Isabella Ludwig dreams of playing for Banyana Banyana

Isabella Ludwig is just one of the many female soccer players at the Randburg Football Club who is making a name for herself.

The talented player is part of the South Africa U17 national team, Bantwana, thanks to her work ethic, passion, focus and willingness to improve.

Isabella has been playing soccer for seven years after her school introduced it as an extracurricular activity. Two years ago, she joined Randburg, a club that places importance on the development of women’s soccer.

“It was the only extra-curricular sport my school offered at the time,” said Isabella.

“I was first invited to be part of the team two years ago and I was so nervous. Unfortunately, I could not attend Bantwana’s first training session as I was in Spain [ representing the club at the Donosti Cup].

“But when I did join, I was nervous that I would not be able to gel with the rest of the team and the pressure was immense because of the competition. All of my worries were for nothing as everything went well with my teammates.”

She added that most of all, she enjoyed the teamwork in soccer, being with other players as well as expressing herself through skills on the field and the occasional glory.

She dreams of playing for Banyana Banyana but understands that she needs a lot of experience and opportunities to achieve it.

“My passion and love for the game are what has kept me involved in soccer but my goal is to play for Banyana Banyana. In order to do so, I need to improve my level and hopefully, I can do it overseas where I can get a scholarship and study and play soccer.”

The club has joined hands with Banyana Banyana’s Janine van Wyk who runs JVW Girls Football Development which nurtures women in soccer.

“It feels great to be one step closer to my goal but I know that I need to work hard to get there,” added Isabella.

“My coaches give me feedback which I then apply to my game in order to improve myself. There are a lot of good coaches and opportunities to excel at Randburg because it’s such a good and well-known club.

“The impact of my coaches on me as well as how much I have improved my game over the years has been immense. I have made a lot of friends on the field and met a lot of good players who have helped me along the way.”

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