A lot of people only woke up to Lauren Duncan’s work and brilliance during the FIFA Women’s World Cup that saw Banyana Banyana perform exceptionally well. Little did people know that the maybe only white woman in a navy suit singing amagwijo with the Banyana squad started with the National teams in 2015. 

Eight years ago, Lauren was appointed the manager of the under 17 and under 20 Women’s National teams. A year later, she was promoted to Senior Women’s National Team Manager but her passion for football dates back over two decades. She was brought up in a football-loving family in Edenvale, East of Johannesburg and spent many nights on the side of the field. Her mother was the Chairlady of the local football club while her brother was a goalkeeper for the same club. Even though she played indoor and outdoor soccer, her main dream was to become an air-hostess and travel the world and you can say that somehow she has achieved the latter. When she isn’t working (which rarely happens), she loves spending time with her friends and family, playing indoor soccer.

In 2012 Lauren co-founded the JVW Girls Football Development Program alongside veteran football star Janine van Wyk. The program consists of the JVW Football Club and the JVW Girls School League.

“We have been going quite strong as a stand-alone Womens club and of course the biggest competitive Girls High school league. We started our very first match in the Sasol League in 2013 with 8 players, and now we have around 100 girls at the club ranging from our Developing Diamonds (as young as 7-years old) to our First team playing in the Hollywoodbets League. We have a good structure and a good development pathway, in having a team in each of SAFA Women’s Leagues as well as our LFA league. We have put in place Coaching pathways, and are in the process of launching other aspects of the game such as Administrator workshops and Referee development.

Our biggest struggles are financial income streams with regards to funding and securing sponsors, but we do our absolute best to keep doing what we love, and that is to grow the club into one of the biggest names in the country.

There is so much to achieve with the club, the Schools league and the program as a whole and it has a very exciting future, especially should the league be professionalised in the very near future.

I ask her about the recognition of the league, she says “ our league is recognised, it is just not professional, which we are working hard to get to that level. It’s what the country needs and of course what our sport needs. But we have had the Provincial league known as the Sasol League running for years where almost all of our National team players have come through, and then of course the newly launched SAFA National League now known as the Hollywood Bets League which is run throughout the Country, with the best Women’s teams competing against each other. We have done extremely well under these structures, so just imagine how much better we would perform at an international level if all of our players are full time professional footballers.”

In saying this, Lauren stresses the importance of having corporates come on board by means of sponsoring the league. “It will cost a lot of money to run a fully-fledged professional league, but I think once that is launched the clubs will also be able to play their part in a professional space by securing their own sponsors. But this cannot be done without 90 – 100% TV coverage of the league.”

Driven by passion and a desire to change the football industry, Lauren took it upon herself to effect some changes to better the sport she deeply cares for and also for the advancement of women in the sport. She understands the importance of working with a team in achieving this transformation and she is grateful to work with like-minded people who contribute to making women’s football better. 

I am curious to know what a day in a football manager’s life looks like and what it really entails. “It’s all things administration haha! there is a lot that goes into managing a team, from preparations prior to camp, to budgets and call ups, and hotels, facilities, flights, visas etc before the team even comes into camp, and then when in camp there is different admin work, like the running of the team on a day to day basis together with the coach.

We saw her learn songs with the national team overseas, she tells us about that experience. “I love to sing and dance ( can’t dance) and be happy and make jokes, that’s just who I am. But when it is time to work, I am serious and focused so when there is a bit of down time with the players and staff I always join in. I am absolutely thrilled with the team’s performance at the World Cup, the players were confident and determined going into the tournament and it showed in their performances and of course to get out of the group. This was the same at the WAFCON last year too.”

What does success mean to someone as highly decorated as Lauren, we ask. “Success for me is in the moment, we work really hard and we reap the rewards for it, and then we move swiftly onto the next challenge/match or tournament. It feels good to be rewarded and to be successful when you see the work we put in behind the scenes, the sleepless nights, the jam-packed days and even weekends. Qualifying Making history, winning a medal or a trophy just gives us so much more joy, but we must not forget that we are in sport, there will always be a winner and a loser, and if we lose it doesn’t mean we are not successful. Success for me is progress. We progress as we grow and learn, each and every day, how can we be better, how can we do better, and who are we helping, developing or inspiring along the way.” 

Winning the WAFCON is one of Lauren’s biggest career highlights as well as qualifying for the 2019 Women’s World Cup and getting out of the group in 2023. She also mentions that some of her cherished highlights are with each camp.
Her mother is one of her greatest inspirations and teachers. “She has taught me how to be strong and resilient, but also humble, kind and caring, and I think that has shaped me into who I am today.” 
Fran Hilton Smith who was the Women’s Technical Director at SAFA is also someone she looks up to. Someone that paved the way for Women’s football and Lauren is committed to continuing where Fran left off.

Lauren’s advice to women who want to follow in her footsteps, she believes that everyone should forge their own paths as well all different stories to tell. “Be bold, and be true to what you believe in, find your purpose and your passion, because that will drive you to achieve the things that you want to achieve. Don’t give up, (although that’s always easier to be said than done) when things seem challenging, or hard to obtain, try another way. Always think out of the box, look for solutions, look for possibilities, and most importantly look for ways in which you can make a difference.” We couldn’t have said it any better. 

We ask her about the one big lesson this recent World Cup taught her and it comes down to things; rest and the evolution of football. “…also that football is evolving and we need to keep evolving with it. We never stop learning.”