Bantwana skipper heads for Spain

Bantwana captain Jessica Wade (right) says being chosen to go to Spain to experience and train with local clubs is a great opportunity for her and something she never thought was in the pipeline.

The Bantwana skipper has been chosen by La Liga, alongside Zambia’s Tisilile Lungu, who was named Player-of-the-Tournament at the recent Cosafa Under-17 Women’s Cup, played in Port Elizabeth.

The technical study group that analysed all aspects of the action on the pitch had highlighted the contribution of the duo for their teams and felt they were deserving of the offer to take two players from the competition to Spain.

The pair will get to train with local sides, to understand the level required to be a professional in Europe, see the sights and sounds of Spain and, if Covid-19 allows, take in a Spanish La Liga game.

“It’s an incredible opportunity and such a wonderful surprise, I had no idea something like this existed,” Wade was quoted as saying on the Cosafa website.

“To get the message that says you have an opportunity to go to Spain and train with local clubs and learn about their football culture is incredible and such a wonderful opportunity.”

Wade went on to say that playing the Cosafa tournament was about getting better results after Bantwana finished the competition in third place.

The JVW FC player, who hails from Alberton on the East Rand, is quite disappointed that she couldn’t help the team to silverware, but says overall she didn’t personally have a bad tournament.

“It was more about the results than how we played. It was unfortunate to end where we did, but the two teams that finished at the top deserved to be there, but it’s a pity I couldn’t do more for the team than I would have liked,” she added.