Match Summary

England Team

Netherlands Team

    Match Report (Mike Payne's exclusive report coming shortly)

England and [Netherlands] played out a low-key stalemate at Villa Park.  Shaun Wright-Phillips had England's best chances in the first half, but was twice off target from close range.  Dirk Kuijt came closest to breaking the deadlock after only 11 minutes, but he hit the post from 20 yards with England goalkeeper Paul Robinson helpless.

England gave debuts to Andy Johnson and Stewart Downing, but they had little chance to shine as two under-strength sides settled for a draw.  Sven-G�ran Eriksson gave Wright-Phillips his first start, and he had chances to make his mark in a first 45 minutes lacking in real quality. 

[Netherlands] had their own share of possession and were only denied the lead by the woodwork after 11 minutes.  Romeo Castelen found Kuijt, and he flashed a shot past Robinson from 20 yards, but it rebounded to safety off the post.  Wright-Phillips then had the first of two clear chances to mark his full debut with a goal.  England captain David Beckham pulled the ball back inside the area, but the Manchester City winger miscued his shot from close range and it was deflected for a corner. 

And after 19 minutes he missed an even better chance to give England the lead.  Gary Neville was the creator with a perfect cross from the right, but Wright-Phillips again failed to make a proper contact, this time from eight yards.  Michael Owen volleyed over the top as England pressed at the end of the first period.

Eriksson made one mystifying change at half-time - when everyone expected the introduction of either Johnson or Downing, the Swede conservatively replaced Frank Lampard with Owen Hargreaves. 

[Netherlands] started the second period in threatening fashion, with defender Jan Kromkamp sending a dangerous ball across the face of the England goal with no-one on hand to apply the finishing touch.  Then striker Roy Makaay fired narrowly off target before Eriksson made a double change on the hour, sending on Downing and Johnson for Wright-Phillips and Wayne Rooney.

Castelen had the ball in the net with a powerful drive after 63 minutes, but the goal was ruled out for a foul on Ashley Cole. [Netherlands] wasted another chance in the final minute, when Gary Neville's ill-advised attempt at trickery left the visitors with a break, but Kuijt shot straight at Robinson.

Caborn welcomes anti-racism stand

Sports minister Richard Caborn has praised England and [Netherlands] for taking a stand against racism in football.  Both sides played at Villa Park in Wednesday's friendly wearing strips bearing messages promoting anti-racism.  "It is great to see England and [Netherlands] uniting against racism," said Caborn on Wednesday evening.  But Gary Neville warned against commercialism clouding the issue: "We have to make sure it's conducted in the right manner and not done just for PR."  The Manchester United defender welcomed the anti-racism initiatives but feared some sports companies such as his club's kit sponsors, Nike, were in danger of using such campaigns for free publicity.  "The FA and the England team have always campaigned against racism very well, we have just got to be aware that it is not cheapened slightly by companies like Nike getting a lot of PR out of it for nothing."

England's red shirts had an anti-racism slogan in silver on the front with the Kick It Out badge on the sleeves, while [Netherlands] had a black and white kit.  Caborn added: "I really welcome the fact both football associations have decided to highlight the issue in this way.  The whole footballing world needs to stand up and speak up against the racist minority that have recently given the game a bad name.  But this should not be a one-off. We need to continue to work together to rid football completely of racism."

It was the first time in 133 years of international football the England kit had carried anything on the front other than the three lions badge and manufacturer's logo. [Netherlands] ditched their traditional orange colours for a black and white kit to show their support of the cause. 

England's black players have been the target of racist abuse in several internationals, most recently when Shaun Wright-Phillips and Ashley Cole were targeted during a friendly against Spain in Madrid in November.  Fifa gave the two FAs special permission to wear the shirts and fans were also asked to hold up cards with an anti-racism message during the national anthems.  England coach Sven-G�ran Eriksson earlier said: "The message is a simple one, but very important. The team and the fans will be saying 'no to racism'.  It is a message that will be heard across football and around the world."

As well as Netherlands, Portugal and Russia also used the black and white kits in their games to show their resistance to racism.  It is part of the Stand Up, Speak Up campaign instigated by Arsenal and France striker Thierry Henry, and supported by other top players in Europe.  The campaign is backed by Henry's sponsor Nike, who also manufacture the kit for the three countries involved.  The campaign's symbol is interlocked black and white wristbands, which players across Europe started to wear back in January.  Supporters can buy the wristbands, with funds going to a central Stand Up Speak Up, administered by a non-profit organisation, the King Baudouin Foundation based in Belgium.  The foundation will use the money to conduct research into racism in football.

A spokesman for the Dutch FA said: "It's a big step for us to give up our national colours, but it's something we feel strongly about and are prepared to do.  We don't feel we have a problem in Dutch football. Fans treat black and white players exactly the same.  But we have visited other countries where our black players have been abused, and there is obviously a problem.  It's something that should be highlighted and anything we can do to make sure racism is wiped out, we're happy to go along with."  The Football Association have been at the forefront of moves to marginalise racism from the game with its Kick Racism Out Of Football campaign.