Dutch score late, draw with England

Amsterdam: Midfielder Rafael van der Vaart scored a late equaliser for the Netherlands who salvaged a 1-1 draw with England in their international friendly on Wednesday.

Striker Wayne Rooney scored his first England goal for a year in the 37th minute and his side looked to have gained a morale-boosting victory until Van der Vaart's 86th minute strike at the Amsterdam Arena.

The draw will leave a bitter taste for England, who were coming off a dismal run in Euro 2008 qualifying, having lost 2-0 in Croatia and drawn 0-0 at home to Macedonia last month.

Although this match was a friendly, wins for Croatia and Russia in Group E qualifying matches on Wednesday mean that England not only ended the night disappointed by this draw, but also pushed down to third place in Group E behind Croatia and Russia.

England manager Steve McClaren could have done with a win in the Amsterdam Arena after weeks of intense scrutiny by the British media.

Skilful hosts

Their skilful Dutch hosts enjoyed plenty of possession but lacked the usual bite provided up front during their own qualifying campaign by striker Robin van Persie, who was absent here due to impending fatherhood.

As even a defeat could have been brushed off by Dutch coach Marco van Basten, whose side are riding high at the top of Group G, the shared honours can only be a bonus.

England, playing in a 4-3-3 formation to match their opponents, were slow to settle and the Dutch could easily have been a goal up after 10 minutes when two of their Premier League players came together.

Chelsea winger Arjen Robben unleashed a stinging shot which England keeper Paul Robinson could only parry and Wigan Athletic's Denny Landzaat failed to keep his header on target from an inviting distance.

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A defensive blunder at the other end put Steven Gerrard clean through but keeper Henk Timmer was able to block the shot and his team continued to play the more fluid football.

Clarence Seedorf, back in an orange shirt for the first time since Euro 2004, kept things turning over nicely in central midfield while Robben ensured a testing England debut for 18-year-old Micah Richards at right back.

Rooney Strikes

McClaren's side stuck to their task, though, and Rooney, who was flanked by Joe Cole and Andy Johnson up front, was rewarded for a bright performance before the break.

Cole floated a high ball towards the six-yard box and Rooney, who, unmarked and in space, bizarrely chose to head towards goal instead of unleash a thunderbolt, was able to steer the ball home.

It was his first goal for his country since a 3-2 friendly win over Argentina in Geneva on November 12 last year.

The Netherlands shrugged off the setback and made an attacking start to the second half, with Seedorf trying his luck from outside the area.

But it needed a jinking run by Robben to cause any real trouble in the England defence, before the danger was averted, and even the arrival of Ajax striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar failed to make a noticeable change.

England midfielder Michael Carrick came close from distance while Landzaat would have equalised had he connected with Van der Vaart's low centre across the face of the goal.

The equaliser finally came when England's defence failed to deal with Robben's long throw into the box and the ball ran to Van der Vaart to rifle home through a packed area.

England might yet have snatched a victory when Gerrard got deep into the Dutch area but his awkward shot was blocked.