Football: Sorry, ref ... the earth wobbled

England's chances in the crucial World Cup qualifier in Rome could be affected by earth tremors, a seismologist said yesterday.

Two full-scale earthquakes that struck central Italy yesterday were strong enough to be felt more than 60 miles away in Rome where Saturday's match takes place. "If there was a crucial penalty and an earthquake struck the penalty-taker might miss, but it would have to be at that exact second," said Glen Ford, a British Geological Survey seismologist. Mr Ford, who is Scottish, added: "I think if England don't win, they'd probably be scraping the barrel to blame it on an earthquake."