Annoyed publicans were surprised to hear of an announcement made at Twickenham’s World Cup warm-up game that the town's bars would be closed after the game, while in reality they were open as usual.

The Cabbage Patch and The Shack were among pubs that took to twitter to reassure punters they would remain open following the England v France match on Saturday August 15 - after a stadium announcement told the 63,118 fans pubs in Twickenham would be shut but drinks would still be served at the stadium until 11pm.

Murray Laird, co-owner of The Shack in London Road, said there had been a sort of gentleman’s agreement that pubs would manage the flow of people into the venues from 10pm but would allow entry if the bars were not full.

He said: "It did affect trade that night. I don’t think the announcement helped and I don’t think the World Cup stewards saying the town was closed helped also."

Jonathon Swaine, managing director of Fullers, which owns The Cabbage Patch, said: "Our pubs were ready and open for business on Saturday night as usual.

"We have dealt with post rugby crowds for decades - and we have no intention of stopping now.

"With the Rugby World Cup just round the corner, we should be gearing up to show British hospitality at its absolute best - not putting up the closed signs."

A spokesman from Richmond Council said it had been working alongside England Rugby 2015, police, traders, and licensed premises for a World Cup licensing strategy.

He said: "The strategy aims to enable visitors to have an enjoyable experience before, during and after each match and enable business to capitalise on the potential income of visitors during the tournament.

"Evening kick offs will cause pressure on the transport system as spectators and visitors seek to get home or to their hotels while minimising the disruption to the local area.

"Therefore a consultation with licensed premises was carried out, sponsored by the local Pubwatch group. They favoured an approach which enabled pubs to voluntarily restrict entry after 10pm if the pub was full and this was trialled at the weekend.

"During the match the pubs were quiet but were busy later as publicans, in line with the strategy, let people in.

"Police and partners will of course be reviewing the strategy in light of experience and in advance of the world cup matches."

A spokesman for the RFU said: "We were asked by Richmond Council and the Metropolitan Police to advise spectators that because of the late finish time of Saturday’s game, a number of pubs and restaurants in Twickenham town centre were only accepting pre-booked customers.

"Others decided not to accept new custom after 10pm."