A CHORUS of groans greeted England’s World Cup defeat to arch-rivals Germany, sending the nation crashing out of the competition.

Heads in hands and hangdog looks among the customers of the Old Rectifying House in Worcester’s North Parade yesterday summed up perfectly the national side’s dismal 4-1 defeat to a superior German outfit.

The English players were hopelessly outclassed in the last-16 match, although Matthew Upson scored a great header to keep England briefly in contention. But a Frank Lampard goal, disallowed even though video replays showed the ball clearly crossed the line, took the wind out of England’s sails.

A grim and dejected mood fell across the pub, which quickly emptied as the final whistle blew and England’s World Cup dreams evaporated.

Joe Grove, aged 26, of Knightwick, between Worcester and Bromyard, said: “I don’t think I have the words in my vocabulary to describe England’s performance. I just feel let down rather than angry. We didn’t have anyone who could control the tempo of the game.”

His brother Tom, aged 28, who lives in Worcester city centre, said: “It was an utter disaster. They’re overpaid prima donnas who expect to win without putting in any effort. England didn’t look close to being a tournament- winning team. I have no qualms with the referee or the Germans. It’s easy to see they were far and away much better than us.

“My five-a-side football team can play better than that. It’s so disappointing.”

Dan Smith, aged 27, who lives in Worcester city centre, said: “I can’t use swear words but the whole tournament has been rubbish. We just got outclassed and outplayed. They were just better than us.”

Leigh Morrison, aged 28, who also lives in Worcester city centre, said: “What can you say? Two of their goals came from our attack. We were in their penalty area. They just broke away and we didn’t have the defenders. We were open at the back. If Lampard’s goal had been allowed, the whole mentality of the team would have been different. Their heads just seemed to drop after that.”

The heads of the fans also dropped as they left the pub contemplating another four- year wait for any chance of World Cup glory.