The Lionesses celebrated reaching their maiden World Cup final, and England’s first in nearly 60 years, by dancing to Sweet Caroline today – but there were only soft drinks in sight with one more step to go on the road to glory.

The team’s official Twitter account posted three images from behind the scenes in Sydney, following an historic 3-1 win over old rivals, Australia.

It was captioned ‘Good times never seemed so good!’ – lyrics from the Neil Diamond classic which has become something of a celebratory anthem for England in recent tournaments.

Goalscorers Lauren Hemp and Ella Toone led the jubilant scenes Down Under – but focus was clearly already turning to Sunday’s final with Spain, as the players were pictured with cans of Fanta and Coke, rather than champagne.

Boss Sarina Wiegman was clearly keen to keep a lid on celebrations, even telling defender Lucy Bronze to ‘stop jumping’ and to immediately begin preparations for Sunday’s showpiece final.

Reflecting on her coach’s speech after the game, Bronze said: ‘She just spoke a bit about the game today, she knew the crowd was going to be a big thing and we could control the game and win the game the way we wanted to, we did all those things and how proud she was of us. 

‘We started jumping up and celebrating she grabbed me and said ‘stop jumping, you need to get ready for the next game, let the kids do it, you stand still’.’

Australian fans were left crying into their beers as goals for England from Toone, Hemp and Alessia Russo sealed victory and put the Lionesses 90 minutes away from lifting two major trophies in just under 13 months.

Second half strikes for the European champions from Russo and Hemp silenced the home crowd of 75,000 hostile fans amid a febrile atmosphere in Sydney, with Hemp’s strike coming just minutes after Sam Kerr had equalised.

England will now take on Spain for the trophy this Sunday at 11am UK time, after they beat Sweden 2-1 yesterday to book their trip to the final. 

The match comes just over a year after England won Euro 2022 by beating Germany and is England’s first World Cup final since the men’s famous triumph back in 1966.

The Lionesses have clearly captured the hearts and minds of a nation once again, as all three Boxpark fan zones in London sold out eight minutes after the final whistle.

A Boxpark spokesperson said that 2,500 tickets across their sites in Shoreditch, Wembley and Croydon sold out in under 10 minutes.

A fan zone at Boxpark Croydon turned into an impromptu dance floor on Wednesday as the Lionesses confirmed their place in the final, knocking out the host nation.

The only person who seemed to be sitting down when the final whistle was heard at the south London venue was a lone Australian at the front of the zone.

Lionesses fans put children on their shoulders, danced on tables and sang football hits following the historic victory.

Alison Symonds-Tayler, 65, watched England make the final at Boxpark Croydon.

Draped in a Union flag and wearing a matching bow, the south Londoner said: ‘We deserved to win. I think we dominated throughout the match and it was very exciting.

‘I just think the girls did really well. Both teams did really well. There was a fantastic atmosphere. Boxpark did a great job.

‘I feel sorry for the Matildas because I have Australian family but I think the best team won today. I think it’s great to have women’s sport get the credit it deserves.’

A young England fan who also watched the game at Boxpark Croydon said it would be ‘amazing for all upcoming footballers’ if the Lionesses win the World Cup.

Emily Bowen, 15, who had painted a St George’s flag on her face using red glitter, told PA: ‘I was actually ecstatic when the full-time whistle went. The click of reality, we’re through to a World Cup final.

‘After Australia equalised it was a bit nervy they were going to come back but (the Lionesses) stayed strong… I’m buzzing.

‘We went out to France for the 2019 World Cup and then all of the Euros games last year we were at. I try to follow them everywhere and anywhere.’

When asked how she will react if England win the World Cup, the Kent resident added: ‘I honestly don’t know. Just seeing the growth from when they won the Euros, to see that carry on, if they win the World Cup it would be amazing for all upcoming footballers, inspiring all the younger girls.’

Dani Beazley, 51, vowed to return to Boxpark Croydon to watch England hopefully win the World Cup this weekend.

Ms Beazley, from Battersea in south-west London, said: ‘I will definitely be back on Sunday. I’m with my daughter and my sister. The reaction in the whole place is unbelievable. The place erupted. It was just brilliant.

‘It is a brilliant atmosphere. (The music) goes on for an hour later and everyone is still enjoying themselves and having a lovely time. We are going to stick around for a while.

‘It’s a great atmosphere and Sunday will just be amazing. It will be double this. I reckon England 2-0. Fingers crossed.’

In today’s semi-final, both sides had early chances, with a key flashpoint just seconds in as Australia got a free kick after England’s Keira Walsh fouled Kerr. Then, Alex Greenwood was booked on ten minutes for fouling the Aussie forward.

England opened the scoring in the 36th minute when the ball skipped past Hemp inside the area and fell at the feet of Toone, who gave Australia goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold no chance with a strike into the top right corner.

The Lionesses held a 1-0 lead at half-time, while millions of England fans watched on TV back home – with some taking a few hours off work to go to a pub or having it on the background while ‘working from home’. 

As the second half began, England had an early scare when Australia’s Mary Fowler sent in an expert cross for Caitlin Foord, although she could not angle the header dangerously enough and forced a save from Mary Earps. 

And the breakthrough for the Matildas came when Kerr scored a delightful goal in the 63rd minute after picking up the ball just inside the Australia half. She ran and ran before releasing an arrow-like long-range strike into the net.

But England retook the lead when Millie Bright sent a perfect long ball from the backline up to a running Hemp, who picked it up with ease, sneaked through the defence, drew out Arnold and fired into the goal in the 71st. 

And, 15 minutes later, Hemp slipped through the Matildas to pick out Russo on the edge of the box, who made it 3-1 in the 86th minute. England then saw out the rest of the match, including six minutes of injury time at the end.

Bronze was overwhelmed after the game, telling the BBC: ‘This is the one thing I’ve always wanted, to be in the final of a World Cup and after two times of getting such disappointment, I honestly can’t believe it.’

When asked what manager Sarina Wiegman said, Bronze said: ‘We played the game how we wanted to, we were resilient, determined, I couldn’t hear much else she was saying to be honest! 

‘We knew the crowd were going to be crazy tonight and she was saying about silencing them and I feel like we did that at the end after the third goal.’

England fan parks – especially the Boxpark sites across London – had erupted after the Lionesses’ first-half goal. Although the morning kick-off appeared to dampen the enthusiasm to send beers flying in the air following Toone’s strike, one fan at BoxPark Croydon in South London was seen throwing his child in the air in delight.

Cricket fans also took great delight in the Lionesses taking the lead, with the Barmy Army tweeting: ‘England lead the 6th test match’. England cricket captain Ben Stokes also appeared to enjoy the goal and tweeted ‘lol’.

Earlier, the national anthems for both teams were impeccably observed before kick-off, with a small section of England fans present amid a sea of gold and green shirts across the stadium.

It comes after England received a good luck message from David Beckham, his daughter Harper and England and Manchester United ace Marcus Rashford. There has also been an outbreak of banter between the two nations, after Aussies stole England fans’ seats and sent up a helicopter to watch a training session.