"For me, the biggest drive has been my family, to ensure that I achieve my goals so that I can make life better for them. That’s my biggest motivation."

"Being where I am now is definitely a dream come true – something I’ve been working towards for years. So, it’s quite fulfilling."

"As a footballer it’s also important to have a purpose besides things on the field."

"That’s actually what I want to be, the best striker in the world."

"Because I don't score for me, I score for the team, I score for my fans, I score my family, and my team to win at the end of the day."

"Football is a team sport, and I would not have achieved this without the incredible support of my coaches, teammates and family."

"Being nominated motivates me to push even harder, not just for myself but for my teammates and everyone who supports me. This nomination also inspires other kids to believe in themselves and work hard to achieve their dreams."

"I’m still the same humble Nthabiseng I was before. But definitely my life has changed a lot."

"A lot of these girls are discouraged. They have to choose between going to school and work or playing football."

"My advice to them is to work hard. Keep on pushing. Because success does not come without hard work."

"I know that it’s important to be educated, because football is a very short career."

"White girls played hockey and netball but my love was always football."

"The nearest women’s team I could play for was in a township and as the only white girl it was difficult at first. I had to learn a different culture and background and a whole different language of the game. I had never seen such living conditions in my life. Some of the girls didn’t have any shoes or football boots and I was getting football boots every second or third month. It made me realise how privileged I was and what I had."

"At first it was really difficult to fit in. The boys wouldn't pass me the ball, they didn't accept me into the team so I was kind of isolated from everything."

"The reason I continued was the determination of wanting to do well. I knew I had it in me to be a good player. I wasn't weak, I could kick a ball and I just loved playing the game."

"Nothing worth having comes easy and I worked hard to make my dream a reality."

"I believe in living a life that’s free of the fear of judgement, the fear of criticism and the fear of not being enough. And when fear does creep in, I confront it and fight back against it."

"I believe that women have an inner strength and are able to accomplish anything we put our minds to. Be yourself, be a leader, be courageous and strong, take risks and trust that you can achieve anything you want."

"The core principle of the dream was to create opportunities for girls of all ages to play football in a comfortable environment, where each player is encouraged and motivated to participate and give their best according to their ability."

"When I was younger, there were many times when I felt isolated and not part of the team because I am a woman. There have been so many barriers but I have continuously let my passion and my love of the game shine through."

"You know, when you see yourself being able to compete against boys you automatically become confident in yourself as a girl."

"No road to success is smooth."

"Any athlete will tell you that. It’s all about sacrifices and hard work and dealing with disappointment and all kinds of failures."

"Most of all what has kept me alive is my passion and love for the game."

"Without this sport I am not sure where life would’ve taken me. Everything I am and have achieved is through this beautiful game."

"I started playing from a young age with the boys who moulded me into a strong and bold woman. They shaped me into what I am today and to stand out among the rest."

"Women are powerful and strong."

"I believe that Africa has quality and phenomenal talent that clubs abroad are benefitting from because of the lack of high-level competitions in our respective countries."

"Football is my life and I wouldn't want to live without it. Every day is an opportunity to get better, whether you are injured and you want to heal to get better, or you don't have confidence and you need to be that better player."

"I just take every day as a new opportunity for me to be a better player and give the best I can towards the game."

"I want to help develop young girls -- and not necessarily [only] young girls, but players in general, and just share my expertise and my knowledge that I have gained over the years to other female football players."

"I didn’t even think that I would reach 100, never mind 150. I was just playing soccer and representing my country. I was just doing what I love. I didn’t even expect that one day I will be one of the most capped players in senior women’s football. I was just playing soccer, being a girl from a rural area, just doing what I love, that’s why I said I feel blessed that I am amongst those legends in Africa."

"I’m proud of myself because I never thought that I would be where I am today."

"You know, that’s why I say hard work pays off. Just keep working. God will answer your prayers and just keep praying."

"When the young girls watch us on television they tell their parents, I want to play like Mpumi Nyandeni or Portia Modise… Thanks to the SABC and Hollywoodbets our games are now on television, if they can’t go to the stadium they can still see us and they know they can still watch women’s football. This will inspire them to play soccer because they are now able to see us and in that way, we inspire them to achieve their dreams and even achieve more than we have."

"I will say to the young, upcoming footballers, they need to work hard, stay disciplined and carry themselves (well). What is important is how to carry yourself and don’t forget to pray and work hard, because your hard work, is going to pay off. So they need to work hard and leave the friends that have bad habits."

"Choose your friends but focus on yourself and believe in yourself. So that is most important if you believe in yourself, no one can take that from you."

"I am also very happy with the clean sheet—it’s something we take pride in as a team. We are now looking forward to the next game with confidence and belief."

"But, it’s also not that difficult because we have been in this team for so many years, so we know what is expected from us, so we have to make sure that we keep the kids motivated to do better"

"But I’m happy for the retired players. They raised the level of women’s football in general, not just at Banyana Banyana"

"I will continue playing until I feel that I can’t do it anymore. Everything we do in life is about timing and I feel as though I can still continue playing for the national team. After all, everyone is entitled to their own decisions,"

"[For the new players] it’s a matter of them adjusting to the game plan of the team so I believe that even with coach calling them, she saw something in them of which it will help boost the team"

"I’m grateful for the support I was getting from my wife, family and team. That really helped me bounce back from that setback, even though it was not an easy journey"

"I’m not a person who likes to become comfortable in one position – I want to constantly improve as a player. I never want to hear people say ‘Bambanani can’t play football anymore’. So, I need to always work hard, especially because age is also not on my side"

"One thing the general public does not know about me is that I work very hard behind the scenes; I even have a personal trainer. I train twice a day, with my club and then with the personal trainer. So, I put in a lot of practice, especially for my passing. What you see on the field is a result of that hard work and practice"

"Our defensive structure was solid and we capitalized on their weaknesses at key moments. The communication between the backline, midfield and attack was excellent and that made it easier to control the tempo."

"The game was eventful and everything we planned and prepared for throughout the week resulted in a good win for us. We are so happy with how we managed the game from the first whistle to the last"

"The coaching team was very clear in their instructions, and we all played with purpose and confidence. We are growing in every match and this result shows what we can achieve when we stay united and disciplined."

"I feel we did very well as a team, especially with our build-up to the game. We worked hard in training to sharpen our combinations and it was fulfilling to see several of the ideas we practiced come to life today. It was an intense match, but we kept our focus from start to finish"

"As defenders, we take great pride in protecting our goal, and the fact that we have not conceded all season is something we work extremely hard for in training. Every player—from the forwards pressing high to the goalkeeper—contributes to that defensive effort."