A grassroots campaign to get Bermuda football legend Clyde Best recognised with a knighthood has been backed by Speaker of the House of Assembly Randy Horton.

And Mr Horton, a former Bermuda international and New York Cosmos player, said Bermuda residents should take advantage of a UK honours nomination system that allows members of the public to put forward names for awards.

“I think that would be a great thing if people out there want to see it happen. I don’t think it would hurt, for sure,” he said.

Mr Horton added that Mr Best, now 63, was a trailblazer as one of the first black footballers to play at the highest levels in the English game and an inspiration to black youngsters in Britain to aim for the top.

“His contribution goes beyond just kicking the ball, it had as much to do with his ability to withstand the racist abuse at that time and he paved the way for black players playing all over the UK and in Europe right now,” he said.

While on a recent trip to England, Mr Horton watched London team Fulham play and got talking to a Londoner at the game who, when he found out Mr Horton was Bermudian, praised Mr Best’s contribution to English football.

Mr Horton added: “He said that Clyde Best had inspired a generation of black youngsters to aspire to the highest levels of the game. What he did gave others a chance later on.”

Mr Horton and Mr Best played together in a Somerset Trojans side which became Triple Crown champions before Mr Best signed for then-First Division English side West Ham in 1968.

Mr Best scored 47 goals for West Ham as a striker in a career spanning eight years, scoring 58 goals in 221 appearances for the Hammers.

He later played for several US teams and top Dutch team Feyenoord in 1977-78 before returning to North America, playing for several teams in the US and Canada.

Mr Best also coached the Bermuda national side from 1997-99 and was awarded an MBE in 2006 for his services to football and the community in Bermuda.

Mr Horton said that in the UK in the 1960s where vile racist abuse was common on the football terraces, high-profile Mr Best behaved with courage and dignity in the face of taunts.

He said: “He played at the highest level and performed at the highest level in an exemplary fashion. He exhibited the highest level of skills in football and he always set an excellent example and was a role model, not only on the pitch, but off it as well.

“He has also coached a lot of young people on the Island as well.”

Former Sports Editor of The Royal Gazette and Mid-Ocean News Kyle Hunter said: “I plan to nominate Clyde Best for a knighthood privately and I hope others will as well.

“If there is anyone in Bermuda who deserves to be knighted it is Clyde. What he did for football and especially black players is remarkable.

“He is also one of the most humble people I know. We recently celebrated Heroes Day and no one was named. Amazing.”

The UK honours system has been updated in recent years after criticism it was outdated and undemocratic. Now members of the public can nominate individuals through the gov.uk website, with separate forms for people living in the UK and overseas.

The honours page can be found at https://www.gov.uk/honours