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E F G H
British fans staying confident
English soccer fans, expecting nothing less than a World Cup triumph, were moanin' for 18-year-old striker Michael Owen as England fell 2-1 to Romania yesterday.
"The team pretty much choked, we need Owen out on the pitch earlier," said English supporter Dave Griffith at a lively Rose and Crown pub, 4 St. and 17 Ave. S.W.
Griffith, 34, who heads to France today and has tickets to an undecided quarter-final match, said he still expects England to go all the way.
"This is just a sidetrack, we'll still be all right," said Griffith.
Romania took an early 1-0 lead and a tense atmosphere encompassed The Rose patrons.
However, a mighty roar exploded when England tied it at the 86-minute mark, followed by another mighty silence when the Romanians won it in the final minute.
"I'm very disappointed," said John Pape, 68, who arrived in Canada yesterday from Middlesbrough, England, and is in town visiting his son. "But Romania is a good team. I expect us to beat Colombia Friday and move on to the next round. We won't lose confidence."
Pape says that his usual watering hole back home, the Western Social Club, sells beer for 86 pence a pint, and 20 pence off that price for special occasions like the World Cup.
"They'll be upset there, but that place hands out more free beer than any place I've ever seen," said Pape. "They'll have had a packed house there for this match."
NEXT ROUNDS: Round of 16 || Quarter-finals || Semi-finals
GROUP A: Brazil, Morocco, Norway, Scotland
GROUP B: Austria, Cameroon, Chile, Italy
GROUP C: Denmark, France, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
GROUP D: Bulgaria, Nigeria, Paraguay, Spain
GROUP E: Belgium, Holland, Mexico, South Korea
GROUP F: Germany, Iran, United States, Yugoslavia
GROUP G: Colombia, England, Romania, Tunisia
GROUP H: Argentina, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan