Portsmouth football fans disappointed as Scotland hold England to a draw in Euros

Across pubs in Portsmouth, football fans turned out in droves to watch their team in the second game of the Euros group stage.

Fans were buoyed by the starting line-up, and hopes were high that England could deliver a second successive win.

As the national anthem played, fans at the Green Posts in London Road, North End, sang in unison, with plenty of chanting at kick-off.

Billy Bramble, 18, said: 'Everyone is saying it, but it is coming home.

'Jack Grealish should be starting but the team looks good – I reckon we'll win 3-0.'

His friend Archie Barley, also 18, added: 'I think we'll win 2-0, with goals from Foden and Sterling.'

As both a Scotland and Southampton player, Che Adams was met with thunderous boos every time he touched the ball.

By contrast, local boy Mason Mount was cheered and applauded for every kick of the ball.

England attacked aggressively early on, with chances for Mount and defender John Stones in the first 30 minutes.

Leon Ireton, 20, said: 'We've hit the post and I can see us getting a goal or two, but it's still early days.

'Scotland don't seem to have any goals in them, fortunately.'

As the first half drew to a close, England's attack slowed down, much to the concern of some fans.

On the half-time whistle at The Phoenix in Torrington Road, Copnor, Rudy Bavis, 20, said: 'We've been knocking on the door but can't seem to get a goal at the moment.

'I think we need to change something at half-time, maybe get Jack Grealish on.'

Martin Morgan, 56, added: 'We had Scotland pinned early on, but have eased up for some reason.

'If we're not careful Scotland could get a chance or two.

'We came here for the Croatia game too – it's nice to be back watching football in a pub, and The Phoenix is the best local around.'

David Mitchell, 56, said: 'It's been a really good atmosphere in here, and I don't think it will be long before we get a goal.'

In the second half, Scotland appeared to come back into the game, with a couple of opportunities – the best of which fell to Che Adams on the edge of the six yard box.

His subsequent miss came to the delight of fans at The Red Lion in Cosham.

Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford were brought on by manager Gareth Southgate, but weren't able to make a significant impact on the game.

After the full-time whistle, fans at The Red Lion were disappointed by the wasted opportunities.

Adrian Sparkes, 64, said: ‘There wasn’t much teamwork and Scotland was honestly the better team, in my opinion.

‘Our players are so much better but they just didn’t show up.’

Paul Argyle, 60, added: ‘We were so much better in the first 20 minutes but didn’t keep that up, it’s a shame.’

But many are still just thankful to be joined by other fans in the pub.

Ben Elliott, 22, said: ‘I wouldn’t miss these games for the world.

‘Sitting at home with no fans in the stadium was killing the game – but being with people in the pub makes the atmosphere so much better.’

For one Portsmouth family, the result was probably the best outcome for the sake of family ties.

‘Football mad’ Darren Archer and his wife Careen sat on opposite sides, with Careen rooting for the Scots.

Darren said: ‘The atmosphere was very tense during the game, but fair play to Scotland, they deserved to get something out of the game.

‘To be honest, I would have been embarrased if we had snuck a goal in at the end.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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