They were gutted, of course they were. But their applause at the final whistle gave it away – they were more proud than anything.

There were no tears, no flying fists, no shattering of glass. Because the 200-odd fans that packed The Chancery in Lillie Road knew their team, little old Fulham , the club that hadn't been given much of a prayer of reaching the second round, let alone the final, had still achieved something miraculous.

Yes, their dreams had just evaporated in the cruellest of ways, just four minutes from the end of extra time with the score at 1-1.

But to grieve was to miss the point - they knew they had been on the greatest footballing odyssey of their lives, a European tour that had begun in July and taken in 18,000 miles, ploughing victoriously through such footballing citadels as Turin, Donetsk and Wolfsburg. Little old Fulham? Not any more.

Jane Denne, who was watching with her father, Ron, and friend Fiona Johnston, summed up the mood of many. "I'm as proud as you like," she said. "Because this is our greatest achievement ever. We lost - but it has been an amazing journey."

Simon Clarke, of Munster Road, agreed, saying: "It's a shame but what an achievement. We weren't expected to win many games."

Irish fan Jean Dolan was also defiant. "I am pretty upset but tomorrow I'll be fine because I'll realise just what we've done," she said.

Another thing they've done is captured this multicultural borough's imagination – it wasn't just the die-hards in the pub: there were Aussies, Kiwis, a Frenchman, an American, they were all there, all decked out in black and white, buying into this wonderful club's impossible dream.

And they erupted as one when Fulham equalised midway through the first half, the incomprehensible still a reality.

Another cheer went up when celeb fan Hugh Grant flashed up on the screen being given a beer – and he would have needed one as the match headed towards extra time, still on a knife-edge.

Fulham were by now huffing and puffing and running out of legs, just as their Chancery fans were finding a second wind, their exhortations growing louder and louder.

Then silence. The killer goal. And, three minutes later, the final whistle. The camera panned to Lily Allen , who was in tears.

But here? Just those claps and some rueful smiles.

Just pride.