Soccer News
Van der Vaart denies England victory in Holland
Nov 15, 2006, 21:44 GMT
Amsterdam - A late goal by Rafael van der Vaart denied England victory in a friendly international on Wednesday, sealing a 1-1 draw for Holland at the Amsterdam ArenA.
Wayne Rooney's first-half goal looked to have been enough to ease the pressure on coach Steve McClaren after some poor results as he prodded home a cross from Joe Cole six minutes before half-time.
But England failed to clear a long throw from the left and Van der Vaart scored from close range in the 83rd minute to give the Dutch the draw.
Steven Gerrard had a shot well saved by Henk Timmer early on after a poor back pass from Khalid Boulahrouz while Rooney headed a good chance tamely into the goalkeeper's hands.
Michael Carrick fired a long-range shot wide and Holland, who had dominated possession throughout but never seriously threatened Paul Robinson's goal, then snatched the equaliser through Van der Vaart.
Even then, England almost won it in the dying moments but Gerrard's shot was well blocked by the goalkeeper.
© 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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