‘Harry Kane is such a normal bloke... Like one of us that made it’

Idols, as England fans have learned from years of bitter experience, invariably have feet of clay, not golden boots. Harry Kane is different.

Despite every effort by fans to keep World Cup expectations on a simmer, Kane provokes eruptions of optimism: on the one hand, England haven’t won a tournament knock-out game since 2006 and face Colombia, a top-rated team, in their next one on Tuesday evening. On the other hand is Harry Kane: five goals so far, more than any other player including megastars such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Nowhere epitomises this tension as well as Chingford, the north-east London suburb where the England captain and Tottenham Hotspur striker grew up. Fewer people have hung out England flags than in previous years. The streets are not filled with people wearing England shirts. The town of Norman Tebbit, who as its MP invented the “cricket test” as a way of questioning immigrants’ loyalties, seems at first glance to be ambivalent about the national team.

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Scratch the surface and you find hope – chiefly because of Kane.

“There’s more hope now. There’s more optimism, although it’s probably a false hope,” says Ian McGill, whose home has flags outside. “But Germany have been knocked out, so they can’t knock us out again. We went to the pub for the Belgium game and people didn’t seem too disappointed that we’d lost.

“We’re going into the second half of the draw with teams we can beat. Maybe we can do it.”

As an Arsenal fan, McGill is not naturally well-disposed towards Kane, whose Premier League goals over the last three seasons have led Spurs to become the current kings of north London.

“Even though I’m not a Tottenham supporter, it was nice to see him doing well, a boy from Chingford,” he says.

His wife Karen, from a family of Spurs fans, is more effusive: “It’s inspirational really. I first heard about him 10 years ago because he went to the same school as my brothers. He stuck in my mind because of the local connections.”

Those connections are still strong. Kane was born in Walthamstow in 1993 and his parents, Kim and Patrick, who is originally from Galway in Ireland, have lived in the area for more than 30 years.

“He was a lovely boy,” says Verna Denny, the welfare assistant at his primary school, Larkswood. “I remember I lost a ring on my little finger. I was looking everywhere for it and couldn’t find it. Harry found it in the playground and brought it to me. I’ve still got it.

“When I think now what he’s achieved, it’s absolutely wonderful. When I think I used to see him kicking a ball around in the playground and he’s now playing for England, it’s just magical.”

People in Chingford have seen superstardom before in one of their own. David Beckham went to the same secondary school, Chingford Foundation School, and played for the same youth team, Ridgeway Rovers.

Nick Zenonos, who grew up near Parmiters sports ground and played for Ridgeway rivals, Brimsdown, believes that Kane and Beckham are opposites.

“He doesn’t have the David Beckham glamour look about him and that’s given kids, especially in this area, a lot of hope. They know that if they work hard then they could be like Harry Kane – he’s done it, so maybe they can too.”

Coming from a family of diehard Spurs fans, and living within sight of Tottenham’s White Hart Lane stadium, Kane was scouted and briefly signed by Arsenal, whose training ground is next door to Ridgeway Rovers. They failed to spot Kane’s potential and he joined the Spurs academy.

“It’s a little bit surreal,” Zenonos says. “As a Spurs fan, he’s one of my absolute heroes. When I first saw him though, I didn’t really see any stand-out abilities. I never thought he’d even be a Premier League player. I almost don’t expect him to keep going because he’s such a normal bloke.”

Kane seems to thrive on those low expectations. A video on his social media account shows him practising, overlaid with quotes from his detractors: “He won’t make it”, “Struggled on-loan”, “One-season wonder”, “Not world class”. Determination to prove the doubters wrong is essential to his success.

John Viggers was one of the first to see Kane up close, when he was sent on loan from Spurs to Leyton Orient, the other local club, to play League One football.

“A lot of Spurs players came on loan to Leyton Orient: Andros Townsend, Tom Carroll, Harry Kane,” he says. “Kane was probably the least spectacular, but I remember saying to my mate, ‘He’s the best one of this bunch – he’s going to shine in the future’.”

Viggers says Chingford has changed since the Beckham era. “It’s true there are fewer flags than there used to be. I think interest in football is waning. I know there’s lots of hype about the Premier League but there’s too much money in football – it’s a business. That’s why Kane stands out. He appears to be bothered about the fans.”

The fact that Kane seems different to the stereotype of previous generations of footballers, with their ostentations and bling-seeking, attention-hungry behaviour, is what makes him inspiring, Zenonos says. “He comes across as such a normal, humble guy. His family have always got time for people. He seems like one of us that made it. It’s what makes the ‘one of our own’ chant so powerful. I think that definitely plays a part in making people feel proud.”

At the Dovecote pub in north Chingford, where the Kane family has been seen from time to time, signs of enthusiasm have been stronger. Some 1,100 people turned up to watch England play Belgium on the big screen in the beer garden.

“It’s just been crazy – they were parking on the grass verges outside, trying to get in,” Alex Agbloe says. He and his partner, Leslie Nkansah, run Blackstar Kitchen at the pub, feeding fans with their enormous barbecue and smoker.

“There’s been a lot of cheering and singing ‘It’s coming home’. I’m not a massive football fan but I’m really getting caught up in it. People are talking about the quarters and semis. It gets people buzzing and it gives us hope for the next four years.”