Heskey rises to the challenge

South Africa 1, England 2

Indeed, in the 17-year-old striker’s well-documented absence, both of his two leading rivals to partner Michael Owen made their mark in an otherwise largely uninspiring 2-1 win.

Heskey had suffered the indignity of not only being replaced by Rooney in the line-up last month against Turkey, but also staying on the bench as Darius Vassell came on instead as a substitute.