London, June 14: A senior Dutch police officer has come up with a novel reason for why England fans were relatively very well behaved in Eindhoven on Monday, despite going down to Portugal - cannabis.Ready availability of the narcotic weed ``may have helped relax them'', Johann Beelan told the British Press Association on Wednesday.Inside the stadium at Eindhoven, scenes were very different with angry England fans shouted obscenities at midfield star David Beckham, as the defeated team left the pitch.Beckham responded with an angry mutter under his breath and a raised middle finger, which would normally have brought severe disciplinary action but was overlooked by the UEFA authorities on this occasion.One known hooligan, however, confided to Dutch Police the real reason for his uncharacteristically well-mannered behaviour in Eindhoven was that he wanted to make it through to Saturday to travel to Charleroi in Belgium, where England meet Germany.Police on both sides of the Channel have expressed serious concern about this match - and Belgium's stiffer drug laws will mean the availability of soft drugs will be restricted.The absence of a cannabis-induced haze and the ready availability of strong Belgian beer may thus make for a different outcome in the police vs hooligans encounter outside the stadium, irrespective of England's fortunes against its ancient enemy.
