Unlike the token World Cup support you widely find in Australia (myself very much included), London is full of proper die-hard football fans ready to put all their emotional wealth on the line for a solitary ball bouncing around a grass pitch. Not to say that Australians don't get 100% behind our national side, we just mostly turn it on during World Cup time while the English are absolutely mad for the game every day of the year.

Needless to say, for the past two weeks everyone has been going World Cup crazy. Against all odds the Australian team has miraculously made it through to the knockouts and as usual, the English side has advanced through as well. So being an Aussie ex-pat working in London, I have caught most of their games and have been able to experience the notable differences in team patronage.

Everyone knows that Australia breeds sporting excellence; the government funds it as well. Our country dominates the Commonwealth Games, does well during Olympics, has produced ranked number 1 tennis players, and possesses world class sides in a number of team sports including both codes of rugby, hockey, basketball and of course cricket. But the one sport we haven't been that great at is football (or at least soccer as it is know back home). We're not that bad, but we're just not that good either. And coming into the World Cup in the same group as Japan, Croatia and Brazil (yikes!), no one really expected too much of the national side. We are picked to loose every match but nationalistic pride leads us to believe that we can somehow win. When our team takes to the field, there is an overwhelming sense of optimism amongst our countrymen. Australian supporters genuinely believe that 'we can do it' no matter who the opponent is. Even if our team is taking a beating or certain players are making mistakes, the overlying mood is positive.

Now, switch camps and you find the reverse. English supporters, while they believe their side should win, are not always backing them. It seems that as soon as the first whistle is blown something is wrong - a player's inclusion is questionable, last match was awful, or there is a feeling that this could just be a bad game. Whatever it is, the mood is negative. And it only gets worse if the team starts to have problems on the field. Jeers of "what was that rubbish?" and/or "God that was awful!" are immediately followed by looks of anguish and disappointment.

The English also have a love for criticising individual players. If one of their team is performing badly there will be an army of red and white supporters on call to heckle and belittle him to no end. Conversely, if that poorly performing player has a sudden moment of brilliance and scores a goal, he immediately achieves legendary status amongst his former critics. But this change of attitude can often be short-lived, his now adoring fans are more than ready to shoot him down as soon as he commits another error - his earlier achievements a thing of the past.

My favourite example of player hating was when Michael Owen went down with a torn anterior cruciate ligament within the first minute of England's last group game against Sweden. The English supporters around me were quick to voice their disgust at Owen, as if he himself was responsible for tearing his own knee ligament. Instead of seeing it as an unfortunate loss of a valued player, he was made out to be the villain who let down his team and country. There was even an email going around today which showed an injured Owen on a spoof movie poster of Gone in 60 seconds. Now that's English solidarity for you.

The Australian supporters contrastingly cheer for their players through thick and thin. Great ball movement and goals are met with proclamations of player brilliance. But if a player isn't doing so well he still viewed as a solid member of the team who is just going through a minor slump. He is definitely not heckled, but instead receives cries of encouragement - "C'mon Aussie!!" as we say.

There is a certain irony in all of this. Australia possesses the weaker team but receives more praise from its supporters than the stronger English side does from theirs. England has a world-class side, one that is tipped to go all the way by some; its supporters should be behind them all the way to Berlin, through thick and thin. I'd hate to see what kind of crowd support they'd receive if England had a weak squad like Trinidad and Tobago.