Sunderland footballing legend Jill Scott to get pitch named in her honour

Scott, 36, has become the first of the 23 victorious Lionesses to be honoured by having a Football Foundation-funded pitch named after her, in her case at the Perth Green Community Centre in Jarrow, which will be named the Jill Scott Pitch.

"It’s an absolute honour to have a site that will be used by so many people in the local community named after me,” she said.

"Winning the Women’s European championship last year with England was incredibly special and I hope, thanks to this recognition and funding from The Premier League, The FA and Government’s Football Foundation, this pitch will benefit Lionesses of the future.“

Scott announced her retirement from a glittering playing career in the weeks after helping Sarina Wiegman's side to European glory last summer, where she won her 161st and last senior international cap in the 2-1 final victory over Germany at Wembley.

Her popularity grew when she was crowned Queen of the Jungle in November 2021 after she beat former health secretary Matt Hancock and Owen Warner in the final of the ITV reality show.

She admitted she had been caught up in a whirlwind since starring in I'm A Celebrity... but is determined to be remembered for her sporting success and is planning a return to the training pitch.

"When I walk past people, they're, 'there's that girl from the jungle'," she said.

"I do still want to be known for my football, so I'm going to be getting back on the grass and coaching very soon and I'm really excited about that."

England will head for Australia and New Zealand for the 2023 World Cup this summer as one of the favourites and Scott is bullish about their chances.

She said: "I'm so excited for that next generation of players and you know what? I don't have to sit on the fence any more, so I'm going to say England are going to win the World Cup."

The much-loved footballer was also honoured this week when she made an inspirational trip to her former school, where a plaque was unveiled celebrating her achievements.

Scott, who is from Fulwell, attended Monkwearmouth Academy between 1998 and 2003.

The Jill Scott Pitch

The new floodlit 3G football turf pitch at Perth Green Community Centre was made possible thanks to a £500,000 grant from the Football Foundation.

The pitch will support the growth of female, disability and recreational football in the area and will be home to partner clubs Jarrow Town Youth, Jarrow Town Seniors, The Foundation of Light and Boldon CA Girls – the team Jill played for as a youngster.

Kevin Mullen, trustee at Perth Green Community Association said: “The pitch here at Perth Green Community Association will be used by local teams to increase their offering to women and girls.”

The venue is one of 23 across the country being created by the Football Foundation – each named after one of the Lionesses who roared their way to success at the UEFA Women’s EUROs 2022 .

Robert Sullivan, CEO of the Football Foundation, said: “We are committed to improving the experience of playing football for everyone and thanks to investment from The Premier League, The FA and Government, the Football Foundation is directing more funding into projects all of which will offer equal access to play for women and girls.

“At the end of the last academic year, there were over 100,000 more girls playing football and since the Lionesses’ glory last summer we are seeing even more girls are lacing up their boots.”