Worthing FC fans celebrate club's receipt of borough's highest civic honour
Worthing FC fans have celebrated the club’s receipt of a ‘prestigious civic honour’ which recognises its contribution to the community.
Fans celebrated the club’s receipt of the Freedom of the Borough – the ‘highest civic honour’ the council can bestow on an individual or organisation – during a pre-match presentation on Saturday, October 31.
Worthing Borough Council leader Cllr Caroline Baxter joined town crier Bob Smytherman at the club’s grounds in Woodside Road to mark the achievement.
The club was officially awarded the honour at the beginning of October, when a framed and signed scroll was formally presented to owner George Dowell and chairman Barry Hunter at a special council meeting.
Saturday’s event provided ‘a wonderful opportunity to share this historic moment with the club’s supporters and celebrate the achievement together’, according to a council spokesperson.
They added: “We would like to once again congratulate everyone at Worthing FC on this well-deserved honour and wish both the men’s and women’s teams every success for the remainder of the season.”
The club was nominated for the honour earlier this year by Cllr Baxter, following their promotion to the National League – the first time the men’s team has reached this level.
Cllr Baxter previously said: “Worthing Football Club is so much more than a football club. It’s an important part of the fabric of our town, bringing generations of people together and creating a real sense of community and belonging.
“The club’s promotion to the National League is an incredible achievement and a proud moment for everyone connected with Worthing, but this honour is about recognising the contribution the club has made to our community over many decades.”
Mr Hunter added: “We’re incredibly honoured to receive the award. It’s not lost on the football club at all just how rare this civic award is, and we take a huge amount of pride in the fact that we’ve been granted the freedom of the borough.
“There are so many people involved with the football club, past and present, who have earned this, so it’s really great that this is something that’s been awarded to the club rather than anyone individually. It’s absolutely a team effort, and I’m so pleased.”