Platinum Stars 0-3 England

Platinum Stars 0-3 England
The nation knows that Wayne Rooney is the key to everything England can achieve over the next month.

But unless the Scouse heartbeat of Fabio Capello's side stays on the pitch, then England's dreams will be left dead and buried on the High Veldt.

In the heart of Platinum country, Rooney demonstrated just why he is integral to the aspirations of Capello's side - and just how he could destroy them stone dead as well.

Entering halfway through a match that drove Capello to previously unseen heights of fury, a stumbling, fumbling display that could yet cost Glen Johnson his place against the USA, Rooney immediately sparked England into some sort of order.

Yet the Manchester United man was a wildebeest in a china shop rather than a sleek, controlled panther, a raging torrent of passion that broke out with a series of wild lunges - especially one on midfielder Kagiso Senamela - and splenetic anger.

We all know what can happen when Rooney loses it on the big stage - when he made the slow walk in Gelsenkirchen four years ago, what followed was inevitable.

As World Cups past have shown - just think Kim Milton Nielsen in St Etienne in 1998 - referees on the big stage may want to make more of a name for themselves than the erratic and overawed Jeff Selogilwe.

And while Capello will not want to lose Rooney's fire, brio and devil, he must harness it, ensure the blinkers are on his one true thoroughbred, prevent Mr Hyde dragging Dr Jekyll with him to the dressing room early.

Capello, of course will know that, as he will surely know the majority of the team he will send out in Rustenburg on Saturday.

Any doubts, sadly, were caused by the failures of players to take their chance in a game where the incessant sound of the vuvuzelas was far more harmonious than the display of the Italian's side.

Glen Johnson's limitations - illustrated when he failed to deal with a nothing ball into the England box after six minutes and was then ludicrously judged to have bundled over Muzi Mashaba for a spot-kick blazed over the bar by Bradley Grobler - were put into more perspective by the calmness displayed by interval replacement Jamie Carragher.

That error came after Jermain Defoe looked to have set the tone for a goal-fest, tucking in with the minimum of fuss when skipper Steven Gerrard skipped round the outside to pull back for the Spurs man.

But instead of building on the flying start, England lost their way.

Gerrard and Frank Lampard seemed as far away from a natural partnership as ever, Defoe and Peter Crouch failed to gel and the litany of balls played straight into touch suggested the game played at Twickenham rather than Wembley.

At least Ledley King appeared the part, cruising through as John Terry slowly found his feet, while Joe Hart's secure handling meant less to Capello than the three panicky clearances that cost him the sharp end of the manager's tongue.

Not that Hart was alone in that, with Capello's constant marches from his technical area seeing the England boss upbraided by the battleship-sized female fourth official, who was in turn rebuked for giving the Italian too hard a time.

The England squad will be tracking the Big Five in the Pilanesburg Game Reserve today but they looked more like World Cup small fry before the break saw the whole team, with the exception of Joe Cole, replaced.

Cole may have been as guilty as anyone of squandering possession but at least, coming off the left flank, he was always trying to make things happen and with Rooney bringing the intensity that had been lacking, England did belatedly improve.

Aaron Lennon's thrust on the right helped and the partnership of Rooney and Heskey had more about it, while Jmes Milner foraged through the middle.

Heskey, though, demonstrated any goals he scores in South Africa will be a bonus, heading horribly wide from Lennon's terrific cross and then somehow contriving to turn a tap-in, set up by Rooney, into a save.

By this stage the Stars had lost any sparkle and two goals came as the home side tired.

Cole claimed the second - his first in an England shirt since Andorra away in the first competitive game under Capello - after good work by Rooney and six minutes from the end Rooney smashed home on the volley from Milner's cross without breaking stride.

Not great. Not even good. But no injuries. Saturday is the acid test.