England B 3, Albania 1

UNSURPRISINGLY, last night's England B international with Albania was all about a North-Eastern based player pressing his claims for a starting spot in next month's crucial European Championships qualifier in Estonia.

What was rather more of a shock, however, was that the player in question was Stewart Downing not Michael Owen.

Despite starting the game on the bench following a disappointing season with the senior side, Downing emerged as his country's shadow-squad hero with his first two goals in an England shirt.

Coming off the bench to replace the injured Aaron Lennon - a player whose early departure could hasten David Beckham's return to Steve McClaren's senior squad later today - the Middlesbrough midfielder underlined his international credentials with a well-taken double either side of the break.

A crisp first-time finish was followed by a cheeky chip over Albanian goalkeeper Arjan Beqaj as Downing pushed his claims for a starting spot on the left wing when England attempt to get their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign back on track in Tallinn in 11 days time.

Downing's bright display was one of the major plus points to have emerged from England's largely meaningless 3-1 win, and McClaren will also have been buoyed by an energetic performance from Alan Smith, who scored the opening goal of the game in the 34th minute.

But while the Manchester United striker's efforts confirmed his return to form following a sickening knee injury at the end of last season, they also highlighted just how far Owen, another recovering knee victim, remains from full fitness.

A game that was supposed to provide reassurance ahead of next month's trip to Estonia ended with an ineffective Owen continuing to look like a shadow of the striker who scored 36 goals in his first 80 internationals.

Suffering from the same rustiness that had hampered him during the final three matches of Newcastle's Premiership campaign, the 27-year-old failed to breach a makeshift Albanian rearguard that would have struggled to hold their own at Championship level.

His commitment was unquestionable as he threw himself into a succession of hefty challenges and diving headers, but the sharpness that had made him such a clinical marksman in his pomp continues to elude him.

If it does not return against Estonia next month - in a game that will not feature the suspended Wayne Rooney - England's already parlous qualifying position could be about to get significantly worse.

Last night's game was little more than a glorified fitness exercise arranged purely for the benefit of Owen, who should have opened the scoring as early as the sixth minute with a 12-yard side-foot that he directed wide of the right-hand post.

But after a torrid introduction to international football, it also provided McClaren with an opportunity to win back some much-needed public support following recent debacles.

By the time the final whistle blew, he could claim it had been a job well done but, for large tracts of the game, England's second-string were every bit as disjointed as their peers have been for the majority of McClaren's reign.

The enforced absence of a number of senior players meant the former Middlesbrough manager was forced to name an inexperienced line-up, but while the faces in the starting line-up altered, the paucity of England's performance initially remained the same.

An Albanian side containing as many unproven youngsters as their opponents dominated the majority of an uninspiring opening half-hour that bore obvious similarities to the first half of England's previous outing against Andorra, a 45-minute spell that had ended with McClaren being jeered by a sizeable proportion of the travelling support.

Those boos might well have been repeated had Albanian winger Besart Berisha, the best player on the pitch by a distance before the interval, directed his 20th-minute piledriver an inch or two lower.

As it was, Berisha's 25-yard effort crashed against the top of Scott Carson's crossbar, but with both Gareth Barry and Jermaine Jenas struggling to impose any kind of authority at the heart of midfield, a capacity Turf Moor crowd were growing increasingly restless when the visitors went close again 12 minutes later.

Phil Neville, a player with enough experience to have known better, was caught dawdling in possession, but after Devi Mukaj released Alban Bushi down the right-hand side, the Albanian striker could only fire a weak finish straight at Carson's legs.

The miss proved costly as, within the space of three minutes, a previously shot-shy England claimed a two-goal advantage.

Smith claimed the first, drilling a low drive into the bottom left-hand corner after Gareth Barry had rolled the ball into his path on the edge of the area.

And Downing grabbed the second to claim his first goal in an England shirt more than two years after he made his senior international debut against Holland.

Loitering at the back post as Beqaj failed to gather David Bentley's right-wing cross, the Boro winger kept his composure to sweep a precise first-time finish into the middle of the net.

It was an understandably emotional moment for the Pallister Park protÃgÃ, but it lost some of its lustre when Berisha scored the goal that his bright first-half display had merited a minute before the interval.

Picking up the ball almost 30 yards from goal, the Hamburg midfielder shrugged off the attentions of Ledley King before rifling a fierce rising drive past a helpless Carson.

Downing extended England's lead shortly before the hour mark and, while his chipped finish over Beqaj was precise, it owed much to the quality of Owen's selfless approach play.

The Newcastle striker's willingness to drop deep proved that his fitness is no longer a problem. Matching Downing's sharpness, though, remains another matter.