Janine Van Wyk Gets Swansong Selection As She Announces Her Retirement

• Janine van Wyk has been a pioneering force for women's football in South Africa
• Van Wyk has played 183 matches for Banyana Banyana and is set to get two final caps
• South Africa's women's team play two Olympic qualifiers against DR Congo in October

The impact of some journeys will only be measured well after they are complete.

A legend of the women's game in Africa will hang up her trailblazing boots after signaling the end of her outstanding career.

Janine van Wyk pulled women's football into the South African consciousness and as a reward, will get two final chances to say goodbye to those she has helped empower.

Van Wyk made her national team debut for South Africa in 2005 against Nigeria.

She has since pulled on the national team's jersey a further 182 times and Desiree Ellis has indicated two more caps lie in wait.

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Ellis will announce her squad for two Olympic qualifiers against DR Congo this week, with Van Wyk to be granted an emotional farewell.

SAFA released a statement quoting Ellis, who said:

“There are so many superlatives that I can use to describe Janine. I think she’s an absolute legend of the game, not just in South Africa, but also on the African continent as well as globally.”

In the same statement, Van Wyk relayed her pride in being able to coordinate her exit. She said:

"This has been by far one of the hardest decisions of my life. This decision has always been one I have wanted to make on my terms. And this is my time to say goodbye to football as a player while I watch the next generation shine.”

A leader on and off the field

Sports Brief earlier reported on the financial advice Van Wyk gave her teammates after they won the Women's African Cup of Nations.

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The 36-year-old defender warned her teammates to use their bonuses wisely while local women's football tried to attract investment.

Coaches and players have stated investment is needed if the concept of equal pay between women's and men's teams was to ever be realised.