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After Angus Fraser and Cork's problems with the ball in the opening four-day fixture in Perth, it was the batting which let England down this time with skipper Alec Stewart out for a duck and Mark Butcher, Mike Atherton and Graham Thorpe all failing.

Only Atherton had an excuse as a clip off his toes was brilliantly caught at short leg.

Having chosen to bat first on a traditionally good surface, a series of rash shots left England struggling on 22 for four.

Hussain played some excellent shots

Only a 73-run partnership between Hussain and Mark Ramprakash followed by a gutsy innings Cork enabled the tourists to pass 150.

England's failure to exploit the favourable conditions was underlined as the home side progressed to 26 for nought by the close with few alarms against Cork and new boy Alex Tudor.

"It was a pretty poor effort," said England coach David Lloyd. "You would like to think your top-line batsmen would get a start, but we have played a number of indifferent shots - it's not good enough, we need to do better.

"The shot selection from everyone has got to be better that that. We need to be playing much better than that, can play better than that and will play better than that."

Early damage

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Left-arm seamer Mark Harrity, rated among the quickest bowlers in Australia, did the early damage by dismissing brothers-in-law Stewart and Butcher.

He later ended England's innings by having Angus Fraser caught to finish with three for 27 from 15 overs.

Butcher, playing his first innings since being struck on the head against Western Australia, became the first casualty by edging Harrity to wicket-keeper Tim Nielsen in the sixth over of the morning.

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But having negotiated the first 15 overs without further loss, England collapsed with Atherton, Stewart and Thorpe falling in a 22-ball spell for the addition of just five runs.

Hussain and Ramprakash were left to protect England's lengthy tail, but inexperienced leg-spinner Ewan Arnold outwitted Ramprakash and induced him into edging to slip.

Teenager Andrew Crook earned his reward for a patient spell by ending Hussain's innings - lasting nearly three hours and including five boundaries in his 57 - when he too edged to the wicketkeeper.

But Cork and Tudor offered spirited resistance with a flurry of boundaries in a stand of 59 in 19 overs before the innings was brought to an end.

"We are always after Corky to score runs down the order, whether that is accumulating or attacking. The important thing is that he spends time at the crease," added Lloyd.

Scoreboard

England 1st Innings:

M A Butcher c Nielsen b Harrity 2
M A Atherton c Faull b Gillespie 4
N Hussain c Nielsen b Cook 57
A J Stewart c Adcock b Harrity 0
G P Thorpe c Adcock b Johnson 3
M R Ramprakash c Blewett b Arnold 31
D G Cork lbw b Blewett 51
A J Tudor c Adcock b Johnson 33
D W Headley lbw b Blewett 2
A R C Fraser c Arnold b Harrity 2
P M Such not out 0
Extras (w1 nb1) 2

Total (81.3 overs) 187

Fall: 1-3 2-17 3-19 4-22 5-95 6-97 7-156 8-177 9-185

Bowling: Gillespie 15- 6-24-1, Harrity 15.3-7-27-3, Johnson 13-6-20-2, Crook 20-3-74-1, Arnold 15-3-37-1, Blewett 3-1-5-2.

South Australia 1st Innings (Close of play):

G S Blewett not out 10
M P Faull not out 15
Extras (lb1) 1

Total (for 0 wickets, 11 overs) 26

To Bat: M A Harrity, B A Johnson, A R Cook, E M C Arnold, J M Vaughan, J N Gillespie, C J Davies, N T Adcock, T J Nielsen.

Bowling: Cork 6-2-12-0, Tudor 5-0-13-0.