Waterstone College learner Jenna Da Silva has been selected to participate in the SAFA/FIFA Talent Development Scheme (TDS) U15 Girls Football National Team Selection, giving her the opportunity to be assessed within South Africa’s national youth football structures.

The school celebrated her achievement in a message to Jenna, ‘We are incredibly proud of you for being selected to participate in the SAFA/FIFA TDS U15 Girls Football National Team Selection!’

Jenna’s selection places her within a national talent-identification programme rather than confirming a place in the final South African U15 team. Players identified at this stage can be considered for the U15 national-team pool and monitored as they progress towards U17 football.

A pathway from provincial football to national teams

FIFA established the Talent Development Scheme to help member associations identify and develop promising young players systematically. In South Africa, the programme is implemented through the South African Football Association (SAFA).

For girls, the U15 Interprovincial Tournament serves as a national scouting platform. The inaugural competition in 2024 involved teams from all nine provinces, with players assessed for inclusion in the U15 national-team pool. Players identified through that tournament and the TDS subsequently trained with South Africa’s U15 girls’ national team.

The programme remained active in 2026, when the U15 Girls Interprovincial Tournament brought provincial players together at Marks Park in Johannesburg following earlier selection stages. Jenna’s selection places her within this wider national talent-identification process.

South Africa’s U15 girls have already shown what the age group can achieve internationally. They won the CAF African Schools Football Championship in 2024, defeating Morocco on penalties in the final in Zanzibar. SAFA has also used the younger age group to prepare players before they reach U17 international football.

Continuing Waterstone’s girls’ football progress

Jenna’s selection comes during a strong year for girls’ football at Waterstone College. According to the school’s published coverage, its U15 girls completed their 2026 JVW Diamond League campaign unbeaten.

Waterstone also has a recent example of a learner progressing from school football to international representation. In 2025, Tsheamo Mosana represented South Africa at the CAF U15 African Schools Football Championship in Accra, Ghana.

For Jenna, the immediate opportunity is the national selection process itself: a chance to be assessed within a system designed to connect school and provincial football with South Africa’s youth national teams.

As the school told her, ‘Go well, Jenna! We’re all behind you!’