West Brom legend Laurie Cunningham's England cap sells for £1.6k at auction
An England cap won by West Bromwich Albion legend Laurie Cunningham has sold at auction for £1,600 - with the money to be put towards a statue of the team's famous Three Degrees.
The cap, which was one of six he was awarded playing for England, was from a game against Wales at Wembley in 1979.
It sold at Sotheby's Auctions in London to a private buyer after being donated by his mother.
The cash will add to funds that have already been raised to try and bring a statue of the Three Degress, which Cunningham made up a third of, to West Bromwich town centre.
Businessman Jim Cadman, who is behind the campaign, said: "We appreciate very much Laurie's mother donating the cap. All the money generated by the sale will go towards the statue."
Together with Brendon Batson and Cyrille Regis, Cunningham was part of Albion's fabled Three Degrees and helped break down barriers at a time when racism was rife within the game.
He scored 21 goals during a two-year spell at the Hawthorns between 1977 and 1979. He was just 33 when he was killed in a car crash in Madrid in 1989.
The bronze statue, costing £220,000, is due to be erected near the New Square shopping centre and will feature the trailbrazing trio. The sale of the cap has given the fundraising initiative a much-needed boost after being hit by setbacks in the last couple of years.
The game against Wales in May, 1979, in the British Championships ended goalless, with Cunningham lining up alongside the likes of Kevin Keegan, Terry McDermott and former Wolves player Emlyn Hughes. The winger earned six England caps in total.
It comes as a campaign to build a statue of him is also under way in London, where he began his career.
Waltham Forest Council is spearheading a separate campaign to honour Cunningham in the year he would have turned 60. The area is home to Cunningham's first club Leyton Orient who are backing the campaign along with anti-racism group Kick it Out.
