TWO veteran footballers from Ilkley have helped England to a Seniors World Cup victory in Pathumthani, Thailand recently.

Rob Pell was the scorer of the winning goal in the final as England beat holders Iran 1-0; it was to be the only goal that the ex-professional Iranian side conceded in the tournament.

Mark Smitheringale was part of the management duo alongside Paul Bell, whose Harrogate Veterans's side provided the core of a squad, supplemented with several ex-professionals, including former Premier League stars Barry Hayles, Deon Burton and Sean Davis.

Former Derby and Sheffield Wednesday striker Burton scored both goals in the 2-1 defeat of Australia in the semi-final, after England had won Group B with three consecutive wins over Indonesia, New Zealand and hosts, Thailand.

It was the sixth time that England had won the competition in its 15-year history, a record number, and once again it was achieved by playing five games in six days in temperatures reaching 35 Celsius.