England fans in York desperate for a victory over the Finns in a World Cup Qualifier were struggling to see the game live tonight.

Following the disastrous loss to Germany in Saturday's last game at Wembley Stadium, only viewers on the digital channel u-directsports were able to catch England's chance to regain glory.

The Northern Wall, Fossgate, was one of the few York pubs showing the game, along with Thomas's Bar, on Museum Street.

The game, the second of England's qualifiers on the road to the 2002 World Cup, was being shown on a pay-per-view basis at 5pm, costing domestic subscribers £9.99 and pubs around £160 plus VAT.

The White Swan, Goodramgate,was another pub that paid to get the game, which was being shown on both the big screen and on two smaller monitors - repeating it at 7.30pm.

Jim Melsom, landlord at Thomas's Bar, is unhappy with the scheme: "I don't mind paying for this game, but I hope it isn't a sign of things to come."

u>directsports, who paid £2.75m for the rights to the game, claim the agreement gives viewers a better deal as it avoids the need to pay a full months' subscription for the sake of one fixture.