So that's European football for the foreseeable future then. Somehow it had to end with penalties. But what a six trips it's been with this latest one to Prague by no means the least interesting.

Yesterday started with hangovers all round before a bit of sightseeing and the road trip to Liberec.

Running late allowed us to see the Astrological Clock in its full glory as 11am came. Death rings the death knell and an hour-glass is upturned. The 12 disciples appear at the two top windows and a cockerel flaps its wings and squawks, like you do. Oh, and a Turk wags his head. Not bad for something built in the 14th century if a touch bizarre, keeps good time too apparently.

Our lateness increased as we progressed from the hotel (the Astoria http://www.hotelastoria.cz, top place) to where we were picking up the car. The spectacular sight of the castle on the horizon was worth a few photos as was Charles Bridge, the oldest in Prague.

Wherever you look there are fantastic buildings, even the run-of-the-mill structures are worth spending a few minutes taking a look at. Certainly not run of the mill is the Fred and Ginger Building which is like a glass office block which looks like someone has twisted at the top. Odd, but impressive.

Once we were on our way to Liberec the effects of the recent floods were evident. The contents of the river were spread all over the banks, although there were far fewer shopping trolleys than if the same thing had happened in Britain.

Thankfully the snow from the weekend had well and truly cleared up with the exception of the odd patch at the top of some of the larger hills. The roads were by no means as bad as reported before the game and in less than a couple of hours we arrived in Liberec.

The city is dominated by the Jested, a mainly quartz mountain 1012m above sea level. At the top is a hotel which looks rather more like a Soviet space ship than a hotel, there for the skiers and such-like who flock to Liberec in snowier times.

The main centre of Liberec is the Dr Edvarda Benese Square which includes the impressive Town Hall and a memorial to the nine victims of the Soviet crushing of the Prague Spring in 1968. Liberec was one of the few places where there was actual fighting and a tank track with the names of those who died can be found on the Town Hall.

Dr Edvarda Benese Square has had a fair few names over the years and was known as Adolf Hitler Platz during the Second World War. As with Prague its buildings are virtually all worth a mention. Away from the main square there are more modern structures which wouldn't look out of place in Scandinavia.

After a visit to a few bars (even cheaper than Prague) it was to the ground where the segregation was somewhat minimal. In fact I was able to walk right round the stadium as it filled up. Programmes sold out quickly leaving a lot of people disappointed.

All was well until the end of the game, in more senses than one. As the Liberec fans celebrated their goal Czech riot police moved in to separate the fans. The way they were dressed it appeared they were all off to a convention of the Darth Vader Fan Club. Very, very scary indeed. There did appear to have been a little bit of trouble and one fan was marched out.

After the game the stormtroopers kept an eye until the many fans on coaches reached their destination. We got back to the car and an hour or so later were back in Prague.

Some of us had a bit of work to do (ie me) and once that was over it was back into the bars to enjoy the Czech beers.

Then, finally back to the hotel for a few minutes' sleep. Today it's a bit more sightseeing and then off to the airport and the European Tour will finally be at an end. Who knows when we'll be back, but it's been great while it lasted.

Photo: Action Images

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