Houston, May 24: Kosta Barbarouses scored in the 64th minute to lift New Zealand to a 2-2 draw with El Salvador in a friendly on Wednesday.
Rafael Burgos had twice put El Salvador ahead. His opener came in the 13th minute when he lobbed the goalkeeper from outside the area.
Defender Ian Hogg equalized for the All Whites in the 28th minute, playing a one-two before driving a shot past the goalkeeper and just inside the far post.
Burgos added a second in the 56th with a shot that went off New Zealand defender Michael Boxall's knee and inside the far post.
Russia-based Barbarouses pounced upon a rebound off Shane Smeltz's saved shot and floated a shot into the right of the net.
New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert was pleased with what he saw from his team that was missing seven regular players.
"We got a number of senior players that aren't here," Hebert said. "Right now it's just about building that depth and building that quality. We had more shots on goal tonight and came back twice against a quality team is very encouraging for us."
El Salvador coach Ruben Israel said his team is also incorporating new faces, and struggled to break down New Zealand's defensive structure.
"New Zealand defended the whole field with all 11 players, and did not give us space to create more plays."
Israel gave credit to Nelson Wilfredo Bonilla Sanchez, who was playing with the national team for the first time, for helping to create opportunities for Burgos.
"Bonilla had good movement, but did not touch the ball much," Israel said. "He made a good pairing with Burgos up front because he created opportunities for him. They work well together."
El Salvador faces Moldova on Saturday in Dallas and starts semifinal round of World Cup qualifying June 8 against Costa Rica in CONCACAF Group B play in San Jose, Costa Rica.
New Zealand takes on Honduras in another friendly on Saturday in Dallas and faces Fiji on June 2 in Oceania Group B play in the Solomon Islands.
