In Elton, you could just hear the crunch of dashed hopes

It had been an agonising wait, creeping from the moment Louise Woodward was found guilty last week until the arrival of Judge Hiller Zobel yesterday at the Boston, Massachusetts, court house. His decision not to decide on whether she should be freed yesterday did little to ease the pain. Esther Leach reports

Woodward's supporters in her home village of Elton, Cheshire, put a brave face on it, saying they had not been expecting an immediate decision.

But underfoot there was the faint crunching of dashed hopes. Earlier in the day the mood had been stoic, shot through with optimism. The women and children of Elton had chanted the 19-year-old au pair's innocence.

The streets are decked with yellow ribbons tied round lampposts and trees. Posters declaring Woodward's innocence and demanding her release are taped to benches and doors.

Children missed school to cram into the Rigger Public House with their parents to watch the latest live broadcast of the hearing. Behind the giant screen set up by Sky Television is a support desk which is taking almost continuous telephone calls from all over Britain donating cash to the Woodward appeal. Anne Wallace, taking the calls, said she was overwhelmed with the words of encouragement from strangers. "I came down here just to donate some money and found myself manning the phones. There is an overwhelming feeling of commitment to the cause and an unshakeable faith in the innocence of Louise Woodward."

One campaigner, Hazel Mayamba-Kasonga, said the judge's decision today was exactly what she expected.

She added: "We can wait as long as it takes. We can go on supporting Sue and Gary Woodward for as long as it takes. We are thinking of sending some of Louise's friends over to her to keep her company. There have been offers of help - homes for Sue and Gary to stay in while they are in Boston and also in this country when they come home and need some privacy".

The campaign has also been offered the help of a London barrister free of charge. John Cooper said he will co-ordinate all the other offers of legal help now being made.

One of Woodward's friends, Kate Hagen, 19, wearing a yellow "Justice for Louise" sweater, said she was disappointed the judge would not make a decision yesterday. She added: "It's all getting a bit too much. They are playing a time game. Louise can only take so much. When I heard the news I had to get away for half an hour on my own. It's a huge disappointment to me. I don't know how Louise will be taking this but it makes us want to go on fighting and fighting."

Paul Lawton, a trucker, led the march for Louise Woodward in his 38-ton articulated lorry, decked out with yellow ribbons. He had driven back from Europe after delivering a cargo of cloth, where he had been flashed and beeped throughout his journey because of his yellow ribbons.

He's one of 15 drivers at a haulage firm in Elton who have committed themselves to the campaign.

"Jean Whyte, a supporter of the campaign, asked if I would help with putting ribbons on the trucks and all the lads helped out.

"Our main priority is to get Louise home. All the support I got on the journey gave me an eerie feeling because it was so unanimous."