SAINTS trio Sam Amo-Ameyaw, Jayden Meghoma and Tyler Dibling's Under-17 World Cup journey has come to an end after England were dumped out by Uzbekistan.
Ryan Garry's side had topped Group C, which included Brazil, Iran and New Caledonia, but were beaten 2-1 by footballing underdogs Uzbekistan on Wednesday morning.
Both Amo-Ameyaw and Meghoma started, while Dibling was named amongst the Young Lions' substitutes.
Amir Saidov gave Jaloliddin Rakhmatullaev's side the lead on four minutes when he fired past Ajax's Tommy Setford.
England settled into the game but struggled to find a way past Mukhamadyusuf Sobriov, who had a brilliant game between the sticks.
Amo-Ameyaw was at the centre of England's attacks, twice having a shot blocked by the opposition.
England did fire back though Manchester City's Joel Ndala but his goal was cancelled out by a fantastic free kick from Laziz Mirzaev.
Dibling, who came on to replace Saints teammate Amo-Ameyaw with 10 minutes remaining, was denied an equaliser by Sobriov.
The 17 year old's rasping shot from the edge of the box was pushed clear by the Uzbek shot-stopper, who made nine saves.
Dibling spurned a chance in the final moments of the game, smashing over from the edge of the box when he had options in support.
Meghoma, who played a full 90 minutes, wasn't pleased when Uzbekistan manager Rakhmatullaev booted the ball clear as he tried to take a quick throw in.
The Uzbek coach was shown red, but it didn't matter as his side held on to a historic victory over England.
Speaking after the game a disappointed Garry insisted that the tournament would still be a learning experience despite failing to reach the quarter-finals.
He said: "I think we were below our level, to be honest. We had a lot of the ball and a lot of half chances.
"Ultimately, we weren't clinical enough in both boxes. I was very disappointed with the first goal - we have to learn from that.
"We have had four really good games. The finer details count at this level and I think we have learned that.
"I'm bitterly disappointed for the group, but the long-term objective is to make sure these boys are ready for the senior team and the older age groups.
"I'm sure there will be a lot of lessons learned, not just from this game, but the group stage as well."
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