THE heart of York exploded into sheer jubilation as elated fans celebrating England's landmark triumph over arch footballing enemy Germany danced in the streets.

Parliament Street, Micklegate and Blossom Street were a sea of chanting England shirts and flags of St George were waved proudly as England's history-making 1-0 victory sparked a spontaneous party across the city.

Beaming fans, hugged, kissed and even cried with joy while others danced in the Parliament Street fountain and turned lampposts into makeshift flagpoles.

The high-profile police presence stood back and let the "good-natured" revelry run its course, stepping in only to offer "words of advice".

Cars dressed with the red and white St George emblem paraded through the streets with drivers hammering out England terrace chants on their horns in celebration of captain Alan Shearer's 53rd minute header which ended almost 34 years without a competitive win over the Germans.

Late into the night choruses of "Three Lions" could still be heard ringing out in the city.

In stark contrast with the ugly scenes in Charleroi, Belgium, police said York's post-win celebrations had passed almost without incident - despite the potential for trouble in the Saturday night melting pot being boosted by crowds from York races.

At about 8pm a large police presence descended on a packed Brubakers bar, in Blossom Street, following a report of a disturbance.

Police, who described the incident as "a storm in a pint-pot", said there had been a dispute and some people had been thrown out but no arrests were made.

Three people were arrested on Bridge Street during the match for alleged public order offences, which police said were not linked to the football.

Sgt Jim Dawson, who saw the celebrations across the city simultaneously on CCTV camera monitors in York police control room, praised the behaviour of jubilant fans.

He said: "It was quite a sight to behold to see Micklegate on a Saturday night packed with people filled with sheer good humour. It was spectacular.

"To get such good-natured scenes in the city centre at ten o'clock on a Saturday night takes some doing."

He added: "We had made provision because the potential for trouble was there so it was good to see common sense prevailed."

Before the 7.45pm kick-off fans were seen rushing to the city pubs for a good view of the game. Queues formed outside many city centre hostelries as early as 6.30pm and the city's off-licences were packed with armchair fans looking nervously at their watches.

At The Rock Church, in Priory Street, a giant screen had been set up for people to watch the game from the pews.

Fans across the city were forced to endure what most described as "the longest minute of anyone's lives" while waiting for the final whistle to seal the victory for Keegan's Lions.

England meet Romania tomorrow but for many fans, by beating Germany, England has already achieved far more than they could wish for.