THREE Lions, two Stourbridge men, one lost flag – and next to zero chance of getting it back.

That’s the situation father and son Tim and James Corfield are in after a fantastic first few days at the World Cup in Russia was marred by the theft of their beloved custom-made England flag.

Tim, 63, and James, 27, had taken the giant St George’s cross – emblazoned with the words ‘Corfs on Tour’ and a Wolves badge – across Europe during England’s qualifying campaign.

But moments after the euphoria of Harry Kane’s late winner in England’s opening game against Tunisia in Volgograd on Monday night, the pair realised their flag had disappeared.

And James, from Wollaston, believes it was stolen by Russian fans entranced by the England tradition of taking such flags to big tournaments.

James said: “It’s a custom-made flag and cost us £100 but the money is irrelevant – I’d happily pay another £100 and have it here with us.

“It’s a bit disappointing that our flag was stolen at the first game of the trip because we wanted pictures with it at all three group games, that was the reason for taking it.

“There was nowhere in the lower tier for us to hang the flag or attach it so we ran upstairs and hung it on the railing of the upper tier.

“It was standard practice during the qualifying games – you would hang them up there and fetch them at the end.

“But some flags got taken as soon as the final whistle went. One minute they were there, the next they were gone. They are probably in some Russian guy’s bedroom now, I doubt we’ll get it back.

“There was quite a lot of fascination from Russian fans about the tradition of England fans taking flags abroad.

“When we were getting our photo taken with the flag in front of the stadium, local people were wanting to pose with it themselves. It was like a photoshoot!”

However, the father and son, who both work for insolvency practitioners Griffin & King in Walsall, have insisted the theft will not spoil their trip.

And they say they have been amazed by the friendliness of the hosts, given the worries authorities had of violence and hooliganism breaking out in Russia this summer.

Former Ridgewood High School student James added: “Every single Russian person, be it hotel workers or taxi drivers, has been so eager to help. There has been no hint of trouble or aggression.”