Fans' goodwill gesture to Kazakhs

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By Chris Mason BBC News, Kazakhstan England fans and Kazakh youngsters celebrate the beautiful game

As the final plane and train loads of England fans arrive here in Almaty, some looking bemused and somewhat bedraggled having completed the 3,500 mile journey from home, the city appears to be in buoyant mood.

Nestled below the snow-capped Zailiysky Ala-tau mountains, Almaty combines Soviet era architecture, Eastern bazaars and Western style business centres.

Its schizophrenic identity perhaps makes it the ideal location for this match - technically a European World Cup Qualifying game, and yet just a few hundred miles from the Chinese border.

Despite being just that - a qualifier - it is regarded here as one of the biggest sporting events Kazakhstan has hosted in years.

"This is the largest number of British citizens ever to be on Kazakh soil at any one time," the British Ambassador in Kazakhstan, Paul Bremmell, told me.

"We are expecting about 1,300 who bought tickets in the UK and quite a lot of people from the expat community here in Kazakhstan. There are likely to be around 2,000 England fans at the game."

Mr Bremmell accompanied a minibus load of England fans to what is known as the Olympic Reserve School here.

It's a state-funded facility that supports sporting excellence. But, as even its principal acknowledges, it is run down and a bit shabby.

"And that's precisely why we wanted to visit it," Mark Perryman, the long time England supporter who'd organised the visit says.

Mark Perryman (left) and Ambassador Paul Bremmell are ready for the game

Kazakhstan is vast - the ninth biggest country on earth - and roughly the size of western Europe. Some people here are very wealthy - thanks to the oil and gas industry. But most people aren't.

The fans organise a penalty shoot out competition on the school's astro-turf pitch, and then gather the children in a semi-circle.

Attempts to teach them to chant 'You only sing when you're winning,' wouldn't win plaudits from the X Factor judges, but did win plenty of smiles and laughter from the pupils.

Next it is time to hand out merchandise, mementoes and memorabilia. Amongst the children there is no shortage of Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea fans.

But followers of Oldham Athletic, Scunthorpe and Charlton are a little more thin on the ground. Or at least they were. The three goalkeepers from the penalty shoot out competition are given Oldham jerseys. Others leave with rattles and scarves.

Thirteen year old Alen Sam joins a few of us for a kick about.

"It is very good that your fans came to see our football match - and see how we play," he tells me in remarkably good English.

"It makes me feel very proud. But our national football team aren't very good. Maybe we'll win the World Cup - in 30 years time!"

Three Kazakh youngsters receive Oldham Athletic jerseys

Ben Dryland, a Londoner, is one of the fans chatting to Alen.

"They have enjoyed our company, we've enjoyed their company and it's been a real eye opener," said Mr Dryland, 33, a Charlton Athletic fan.

"As a Charlton supporter I've seen some skills today I've not seen in ages," he quips.

His father Alan, 62, sums up the sentiments of many.

"It is very simple. We have so much and they have so little. A day like today it's nothing to us to give up a few hours but for them it is something really special.

"Football is the world's universal language and if we are the ambassadors for once then so be it - because England fans have got a certain reputation to recover."

And yes, this is the antithesis of the stereotypical image of England fans abroad being a marauding bunch of tanked up morons, intent on yobbery at best and violence at worst.

For many, there will have to be plenty more years of England fans overseas keeping out of trouble before their reputation is fully restored. But for Mark Perryman, it's not really about that.

"When I was nine, if a group of Brazilian fans had turned up at my school and done the samba, I'd still have the badge.

"I wouldn't have forgotten it to this day. I hope we can have something like that effect on these kids."