While Kaylin Swart could etch her name in the history books of South African football if she takes the field in Australia and New Zealand for her third global event, she’s still in awe of her achievement.
Back in 2010, a 16-year-old Swart made her first appearance as a goalkeeper in the Fifa Under-17 World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago.
While most of her peers fell by the wayside, except for Jermaine Seoposenwe, Swart remained in the game and she could play in her third global showpiece.
The 28-year-old from Gqeberha played the second group stage game when Banyana Banyana made their debut at the senior World Cup in France four years ago.
Despite playing second fiddle to Andile Dlamini over the years, she remains a vital cog in coach Desiree Ellis’s team.
She made the squad for the finals in Oceania that start on July 20.
Swart will be the third Banyana player, alongside Seoposenwe and Sibulele Holweni, to be part of three World Cups, but she could become the first South African goalkeeper to do so.
“It’s awesome. I still can’t believe that I have achieved these things. Obviously as a footballer you want to go to the World Cup because that’s the pinnacle of our careers,” Swart said ahead of the team’s departure.
“This is the second one at the senior level and I think we’ve grown a lot over the last four years, so I think we are just ready to get going because the excitement is real now and it’s starting to kick in.”
Banyana’s growth, which includes winning the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) last year, will be tested. Defensively they will aim to improve on the eight goals they conceded in France.
Swart, speaking on behalf of vice-captain Dlamini and debutant Kebotseng Moletsane, said they are prepared to shoulder the responsibility in goal.
“It’s massive. You can’t lose if you keep clean sheets. That’s what the coach usually tells us. But coach Cammy (Cameron Cox) has put us in a good standing this time around,” Swart said.
“We’ve grown a lot as players and goalkeepers. They always say goalkeepers get better with age, so I think that’s definitely something that we’ll take into consideration – we are older and wiser now.”
Banyana’s fighting spirit came to the fore off the pitch when they took Safa on following poor preparations and demanded better remuneration.
That battle, which they won courtesy of the intervention of the Motsepe Foundation, Ithuba, ANC Youth League and SA Football Players Union, united the team. That’s why Swart feels they can spring a surprise in Group G where they’ll face Sweden, Argentina and Italy.
“People need to understand that unity is not built overnight. This chemistry and team cohesion, we’ve built over years. And I think we’ve really understood ourselves going into Wafcon,” Swart said.
“We’ll always fight for each other, no matter what.
“I think this time around we’ve really shown what we are capable of as a team. And if we continue with this chemistry, the possibilities are endless for us.
“We have worked a lot on ourselves but also as a team. I think we might shock some people. Despite what we went through, I think this is also something that has brought a lot of chemistry and unity.”
@MihlaliBaleka