Speaking at the unveiling ceremony for his statue this morning at the Peter May Sports Centre, Kane, 31, said he hoped it would inspire young players to “follow in my footsteps”, reports Marco Marcelline
Footballer Harry Kane’s statue was finally unveiled today at his childhood football club in Walthamstow, five years after it was first commissioned by Waltham Forest Council.
Speaking at the statue unveiling ceremony this morning (18th November) at the Peter May Sports Centre, Kane, 31, said he hoped it would inspire young players to “follow in my footsteps”.
The all-time leading goalscorer for England grew up in Waltham Forest and played for the Ridgeway Rovers as a young child.
The £7,200 statue shows the striker sporting an England kit and holding a football on his knee.
A brand new mural behind the statue depicts highlights from the seasoned footballer’s career, including his debut England goal against Lithuania back in 2015.
Speaking about the mural today, he said: “I think it’s a really incredible story of my journey and my life and the hard work.”
Asked if he was happy with the statue and its location, the footballer told the Echo: “I’m really impressed with it to be honest. The Peter May Centre was where I played my first football for Ridgeway Rovers and also where I played my school football with Chingford Foundation School so I have a lot of good memories here. To be honest I don’t think there’s a better place than having it here.”
He added: “A lot of boys and girls still play here. This statue is something for them to look at and hopefully it’ll inspire them to be leading their country out [on the pitch] one day.”
Writing on social media later, Kane said: “A real proud moment for me to go back to where my life in football began and unveil a statue. I hope it helps inspire the next generation to work hard and believe in themselves.”
The statue has languished in storage for years because Conservative councillors Emma Best and Roy Berg could not find a home for it. In 2019 and 2020, the Endlebury ward councillors were allocated £7,200 from Waltham Forest Council’s ‘community ward funding’ pot for the statue.
It later emerged that Transport for London (TfL) slapped down plans to put the statue in Chingford Station because of concerns that it would distract train drivers.
It would have been placed behind the buffer stops at the end of the terminal platforms, but TfL said drivers would be distracted by people posing for photographs on or next to it, or hanging items such as scarfs on it.
Chingford’s Ridgeway Park was also considered as a spot to place the statue but this was ultimately shelved too.
Cllr Best partly attributed the delay in its unveiling to the pandemic but argued that she has spent “hours and hours” trying to find the right time and place for its reveal.
Speaking previously to the Echo, council leader Grace Williams criticised Cllr Best and Cllr Berg’s decision to spend community ward funding on the statue.
She said: “The council has designed ward funding to be used by ward councillors to support residents’ local priorities. In 2019, Conservative Endlebury Councillors decided to use over £7,000 – 70% per cent of their ward funding – on a statue of Harry Kane with no plan for where it would go and no quality control.”
When photos of the statue leaked in March, there was a largely negative reaction on social media, with commentators declaring it was “nothing like him”.
Others commented that it appeared to be made of chocolate, with one X user pondering if Dairy Milk bars were used for the sculpture.
Yesterday, Kane scored a penalty in England’s 5-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in a Nations League game.
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