TODAY we should have been eagerly looking forward to England's next game in Euro 2000. Instead, we are dreading what new disgrace awaits us.

Once more a hardcore of thugs has ruined a festival of football. This newspaper wholeheartedly condemns those morons whose lust for violence spoiled England's historic victory over the Germans and further tarnished our country's good name.

The question everyone now wants answered is: what can be done to stop them? European football's governing body UEFA believes the team should pay the penalty for the hooliganism. It has threatened to boot England out of the tournament if the violence reoccurs. That would be inherently unfair and would devalue the entire event.

Many will suspect that UEFA's response is politically motivated. Germany's hooligans have been active in Euro 2000, and Galatasaray followers murdered two England fans in the UEFA Cup. Yet neither Germany nor Galatasaray faced expulsion from their respective competitions.

There have been enough hot heads on the streets of Charleroi this weekend: the last thing we need is hot-headed reactions by football and political leaders.

This is not the moment to talk of more draconian legislation. Most of the 900 English fans arrested and deported had no record of football violence. No law, barring the confiscation of every fan's passport, could therefore have stopped them.

The authorities must begin by listening to all sides of the story. It makes no sense that suddenly so many English fans have turned into hooligans.

The Belgian police's heavy handed tactics, turning the water cannon on supporters, throwing tear gas into bars and arresting everyone in England colours, suggest that some of those deported were innocently caught up in the turmoil.

Most England fans are not thugs. That was proved in York when the post-match celebrations had a carnival atmosphere.

It is a terrible shame that this friendly face of football is constantly disfigured by the ugly behaviour of a minority.

HOT NEWS AT LAST

ANOTHER bizarre weather episode, and this one was the most freakish yet: a hot, dry and sunny spell that coincided with the weekend. Even more surprisingly, this baffling climatic phenomenon has failed to provoke a hosepipe ban.

Forecasters promise a quick return to the scattered showers of tradition. So it would be wrong to suggest that the last few days brought final proof of global warming.

For that we must wait a few weeks. Meteorologists will no doubt be monitoring the forthcoming Wimbledon fortnight. If it remains warm and dry throughout, they will have their clinching evidence.