Rooney at the double again as England advance

England forward Wayne Rooney(R) is congratulated by captain David Beckham after scoring against Croatia during their Euro 2004 first round clash at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon

Wayne Rooney's single-handed assault on Euro 2004 gathered momentum as England's extraordinary teenager fired his country to a 4-2 win over Croatia and into a quarter-final with Portugal.

The Everton forward made the Paul Scholes goal that cancelled out Niko Kovac's Croatia's shock early opener then claimed two more of his own to put England in control of the match and himself at the top of the tournament's goalscoring charts.

Juventus defender Igor Tudor briefly gave Croatia hope of a late turnaround but their resistance was crushed by the tireless Frank Lampard, who scored his own second goal of the tournament nine minutes from the end.

The England fans occupying three quarters of the Stadium of Light started and finished the match with exuberant renditions of 'I'm H-A-P-P-Y, I'm H-A-P-P-Y'.

It was not a sentiment they could have declared five minutes into the match, when Croatia took the lead by exploiting the English defence's inability to cope with balls fired into their six-yard box at pace.

England forward Wayne Rooney(L) jumps past Croatia's forward Ivica Olic during their Euro 2004 first round clash in Lisbon

Milan Rapaic, needlessly fouled by Beckham close to the left touchline, provided the free-kick delivery. Niko Kovac provided the finish, prodding the ball past David James in the scramble that ensued from the failure of the goalkeeper or either of his centre-backs to clear the danger.

England should have been quickly back on level terms but Scholes, left with only Tomislav Butina to beat by Rooney's neat flick, fired straight at the legs of Croatia's goalkeeper.

Butina needed two attempts to gather Steven Gerrard's deflected shot mid-way through the first half and a Beckham free-kick from his specialised area on the edge of the box was blocked by the wall.

Dado Prso provided a reminder of Croatia's attacking threat by drifting along the 18-yard line and firing in a low shot that was smothered by James and, as half-time approached, they were looking increasingly capable of absorbing England's pressure.

That impression was shattered by the defence-splitting pass from Frank Lampard that put Owen clear in the box. Butina blocked the Liverpool striker's attempt at a chipped finish but the ball flew straight to Rooney, whose header across goal was finished off by Scholes.

Croatia's midfielder Niko Kovac (L) celebrates with defender Josip Simunic after scoring against England during their Euro 2004 first round clash

The Manchester United midfielder celebrated his first England goal in three years by returning the compliment with the pass that allowed Rooney to score in first half stoppage time.

Butina got a hand to it but there was no stopping the 25-yard drive as it flew into the far corner of the net.

The Croatian goalkeeper did better to deny Scholes from a similar distance four minutes after the restart after yet another piece of inventiveness from Rooney had opened up his team-mate's path to goal.

Scholes, looking more confident in an England shirt than for some time, then presented Owen with the chance to earn his side some extra margin of error. But with only Butina to beat, the Liverpool striker lifted his chip over the bar and onto the top of the net.

Croatia's forward Milan Rapajic (R) is tackled by England captain David Beckham during their Euro 2004 first round clash in Lisbon

The contrast between that hesitant attempt and the decisiveness of Rooney after he sprung the Croat offside trap in the 68th minute could not have been more marked.

Before Butina had even started to move off his line, the Everton forward had slotted the ball past him.

England's fans were able to relax, but only for the five minutes before Tudor headed in a corner to put the Croats back within sight of a late turnaround.

Lampard ensured there was no prospect of that however. A break by substitute Darius Vassell exposed the tired legs of Croatia's back four and the Chelsea midfielder took advantage by sweeping past one weary challenge before striking a left-foot shot past Butina from the edge of the area.

James capped a busy evening's work with another good stop from a Prso shot that was to prove Croatia's last meaningful contribution to a tournament in which they have surprised a few people.