ENGLAND fans in Burnley last night put their hands together and prayed to the Almighty for a World Cup win.

But first they had to pray for the electricity to come on after a power cut left St Stephen's Church in Oxford Road in darkness.

Just minutes before the special Burnley and England United service was due to start, the Rev Philip Chew : "Let there be light." And there was light.

Now he is hoping his prayers for England will be equally successful.

He said: "There was a power cut and we were getting ready just to do an unplugged session with the piano and acoustic guitar but the lights came on at the very last minute. I told everyone I had prayed for lights. It couldn't have been timed any better."

Around 200 parishioners packed the church, which was a sea of white and red and resembled a football terrace with balloons and bunting, inflatables and flags.

Traditional hymns were put to one side for the night in place of football anthems including You'll Never Walk Alone, Three Lions, Abide With Me and Jerusalem.

Mr Chew, who thought of the idea with his wife Janet, was wearing a specially designed England away shirt, complete with dog collar, and even had yellow and red cards to control the crowds.

He said: "It was about tapping into the atmosphere of England in the World Cup and the fact it was the night before the final group match and to put England's fate in the hands of God.

"The whole thing came together very well. It was a great atmosphere and everyone really enjoyed it."