England fan attends Australia game at Wembley after falling 'neck deep' into canal

England fans prepared for rain ahead of the Three Lions' friendly against Australia at Wembley in October 2013.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

England fan Matthew Stadlen attended the Three Lions' friendly win over Australia at Wembley on Friday night – despite falling into a canal just before the game.

The TV and radio presenter shared his story on social media on Friday, revealing he had parked his car and then walked across what he throught was a grass verge, only to discover it was in fact a canal and ending up "neck-high" in the water.

"Parked my car en route to the England Australia game at Wembley and I’ve just walked neck high into a canal or a pond." Stadlen wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

And he added: "Thought it was grass. Pity the people sitting next to me."

Stadlen then posted a second message with his view of the action at Wembley, in which he said: "Good seats at least. Just a bit chilly. And smelly."

Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins turned in a Jack Grealish shot after 57 minutes to score the only goal of the game in the clash at Wembley.

It was Watkins' third goal in eight appearances for England and marked a happy return to the international fold for the striker in a much-changed side.

Manager Gareth Southgate kept a number of his biggest stars in reserve, including captain Harry Kane and in-form midfielder Jude Bellingham, ahead of the Three Lions' Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy on Tuesday night.

More England stories

England vs Australia 2003: Where are they now? A look at the fortunes of the 22 players involved in the 3-1 defeat to the Socceroos at Upton Park, when manager Sven-Goran Eriksson picked a different XI for each half.

England midfielder Jude Bellingham has made a sensational start to life at Real Madrid – and the 20-year-old believes it is time for the Three Lions to "win major trophies" after coming close in recent years.

Check out the England squad for the October internationals – with some suprise names included by manager Gareth Southgate.

Ben Hayward
Weekend editor

Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.