Poles were happy and Russians disappointed after their 1-1 draw in Tuesday's football duel in Warsaw, a high-voltage face-off preceded by clashes between hooligans and police.
"The main thing is that we didn't lose, even though it would have been worth more to win," said Jerzy Borowczak, a former Solidarity union leader at the freedom fighting Gdansk Shipyard turned member of parliament.
"We'll win against the Czechs, we'll have five points and we'll make it into the quarter-finals," he added enthusiastically at the stadium exit.
The union's iconic leader Lech Walesa decked out in a red-and-white Poland scarf was also cheering in the stands, as were Poland's similarly dressed President Bronislaw Komorowski and football savvy Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Source: AFP
