Local lioness mary earps honoured with net tram renaming

NOTTINGHAM Lioness Mary Earps has become the latest star to receive the highly coveted accolade of a Nottingham Express Transit (NET) tram named in her honour.

Widely considered to be a token of the highest praise from the city, the renaming follows Mary's incredible success at this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup and the Lionesses' historic UEFA Women's Euro 2022 win.

The new Mary Earps tram was unveiled by Mary Earps herself during a special ceremony held at the NET depot close to the Wilkinson Street tram stop. And, in homage to her early football beginnings, the BBC Sport Personality of the Year nominee was also joined by junior players from her grass roots team, the West Bridgford Colts, at the ceremony.

Mary Earps, who currently plays for both Manchester United and England, was born in West Bridgford and began playing for the West Bridgford Colts at just ten years old.

Speaking about the tram renaming, she said: “I can’t quite believe it. It’s not every day you get a tram named after you and it’s lovely to be back home in Nottingham to unveil it. It’s also great to meet some of the up-and-coming young West Bridgford Colts players which is where it all began for me. I’ll be sure to take a trip back to Nottingham soon and hopefully when I come back, I’ll be able to hop around on my own tram.”

Mary joins a range of other notable Nottingham heroes such as actress Vicky McClure, cricketer Stuart Broad, ice skaters Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean and author DH Lawrence who also currently have trams named after them.

Alison Sweeney, head of marketing at NET said: “Naming our trams after local heroes and notable people, such as Mary, serves as a great way to honour the successes of those from our city who are flying the flag for excellence. In Mary’s case, her significant contribution to football, especially in the women's game, is certainly something to be celebrated, and following calls from many locals to rename a tram in her honour, we thought it was a fantastic idea.

“The trams are an integral part of Nottingham life and the renaming of our trams is really important to us and the wider city. Over the years, we’ve honoured a range of noteworthy people who hail from our great city, including sportspeople, writers and advocates, many of which, like Mary, have been suggestions by locals.

“We recognise the need for the community to continue to get to have their say in what the trams will be named. As such, to ensure our trams remain representative of all the local heroes in the area, we’re currently reviewing our tram renaming process and will reveal more information about our plans over the coming months.” 

For more information on NET’s namesake trams, go to https://www.thetram.net/tram-names