Skip to content

Euro 2022: Beth Mead could be honoured with freedom of Scarborough

Nigel French/PA wire Beth Mead holding two trophiesNigel French/PA wire
Beth Mead, from Hinderwell, won the Golden Boot and was named the best player of the Euro 2022 tournament

North Yorkshire's Euro 2022 star Beth Mead should be honoured for her success on the pitch, councillors have said.

Mead, from Hinderwell, was named the best player of the competition and won the Golden Boot award as she was the tournament's top scorer.

In Hinderwell, neighbours gathered to cheer her on in Sunday's final, which saw England beat Germany 2-1.

In Scarborough, councillors have called for another award to add to her trophy cabinet: the Freedom of the Borough.

Image of girls hugging after the final whistle of the Euro 2022 final
Young fans in Staithes, near Beth Mead's home village of Hinderwell, celebrated England's victory in the Euro 2022 final

Philip Nedley, from Hinderwell, who was Beth Mead's first football coach when she was aged five, said he watched the final from a club in the nearby village of Staithes.

He said: "We are only a little tiny village among lots of little tiny villages, and to have somebody actually winning the European championship is absolutely phenomenal. We are so proud of her."

Philip Nedley in Hinderwell
Philip Nedley said Beth Mead was an "awesome player" even at the age of five when he coached her football team

Beth Watson used to play with Mead on the village pitch and said there were barriers for girls to participate in the game when they were young.

She said: "It was hard, it always seemed like a fight on your hands, but there was never anything going to stop her from doing this professionally. It was just always going to happen for her.

"It was very emotional [watching the final], which I thought it would be."

Beth Watson standing on the pitch in Hinderwell
Beth Watson played football with Mead on this pitch in Hinderwell when they were youngsters

James Lyth, from R Lyth Butchers in Hinderwell, said the village was "very, very proud" of Mead's success.

"It's an absolutely marvellous achievement to get where she wanted to be. Can't get any better really," he said.

In Hinderwell on Sunday, villagers had gathered at The Brown Cow pub to watch the match,.

Landlord Mark Yeoman said the bar had been packed with fans of all ages, from young children to people in their 80s.

Mr Yeoman said he had "known Beth since she was a bairn" and added: "She was a star back at six or seven years old on the football pitch.

"Everybody could see she had talent and I'm over the moon she's done so well. It's brilliant."

Butcher standing outside shop
James Lyth runs a butchers in Hinderwell and said the women's victory in Euro 2022 was "absolutely marvellous"

Mead will add her Euro 2022 trophies to an awards list that also includes being the winner of the first Yorkshire Open Egg Throwing Championships in Hinderwell in 2015.

Councillors in Scarborough have now called for the footballer to be given the civic honour of the Freedom of the Borough of Scarborough.

Councillor Derek Bastiman said Mead was a "role model for many young women around the world".

He added: "It seems the least we can do for such a star is to honour one of our own in the highest way we can."

Scarborough Council leader councillor Steve Siddons said it was "entirely appropriate" for the borough to find a way to celebrate Mead's achievements.

Lanlord Mark Yeoman at the bar in the Brown Cow pub
Mark Yeoman at The Brown Cow Pub in Hinderwell, where villagers celebrated the women's victory in Euro 2022
Presentational grey line

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].