Oxford Mail reporter Russell Smith reports from Charleroi on another night of anguish for England . . .

It was always going to be a nerve-wracking night - but having made the trip to Charleroi, England's Euro 2000 exit hit home even harder.

Sitting among the packed ranks of England fans in the compact Stade du Pays de Charleroi, I ran the full gauntlet of emotions.

The game began in a party atmosphere, charging the expectancy of Keegan's red and white-clad travelling army. But this quickly turned to frustration as Moldovan fired the technically superior Romanians ahead.

Hope returned with Ince driving into the area before being upended and Shearer's equaliser from the penalty spot brought welcome relief.

And then, almost unbelievably, England were ahead. Owen nicked the ball past Stelea to shoot home and spark scenes of unbridled joy.

But it proved short-lived as Martin's punch lacked distance and Munteanu crashed home the equaliser after the break.

Tension mounted on the terraces as the clock ticked away with England struggling to keep Romania at bay before disaster struck.

Phil Neville's desperate lunge sent Moldovan crashing to the turf in the area two minutes from time. Ganea slams home the spot-kick.

Desolation. We're out. Another cruel exit. As we troop out of the ground - without a hint of trouble - one wag remarks to a local gendarme with a hint of irony: "That's all your double time gone now."

And yet the day had dawned with such hope.

I was lucky enough to attend the game on an all-expenses paid trip courtesy of Comet in association with Sony Playstation after my brother Greg's purchase of a kettle led to him winning two tickets in a Euro 2000 draw.

As we made our long journey by coach and ferry, I remarked that it was 30 years since England last beat Romania - 1-0 in the 1970 World Cup in Mexico.

"You're an old cynic," says Steve, a ref from Essex. "You tend to be in my line of business," I reply, before adding that I was optimistic England could get the draw they needed to reach the quarter-finals.

Arriving in Charleroi, the mood of the England fans in the streets around the ground seems subdued. It's as if there's a sense of foreboding. We go into a bar - the Cafe du College - and get talking to Lucien, one of the locals.

De Wilde, Belgium's kamikaze keeper, is not his favourite player after the joint hosts' exit 24 hours earlier.

However, he's backing England to win 2-0 before going on to defeat France in the final.

Struggling with the lingo, I give him the thumbs-up, but deep inside feel he is sadly misguided.

Two hours later that feeling turns to reality.

We're going home.