CHRISTCHURCH: Engl­­a­nd took charge of the first Test against New Zeala­nd on Saturday, riding Harry Brook’s 171 to a first-innings lead of 151 before reducing the Black Caps to 155 for six at close of play on day three in Christchurch. New Zealand openers Tom Latham and Devon Conway departed cheaply before tea, and the crisis deep­ened when Kane Willi­­amson and Tom Blun­dell were dismissed in successive balls in the final session with the hosts still in arrears at the Hagley Oval. Williamson offered hope with an innings of 61 but it all but disappeared when Chris Woakes, belying his reputation as a bowler who struggles outside England, trapped him in front and then had Blundell caught behind off a nick for a golden duck. Glenn Phillips fended off the hat-trick ball but followed his team-mates off the field in the last 20 minutes of play when he was dismissed lbw for 19 by Brydon Carse. Daryl Mitchell, unbe­aten on 31, and debutant all-rounder Nathan Smith, who had scored one not out, were at the crease at stumps with New Zealand just four runs ahead. “I had a lot of luck, didn’t I? Thankfully I cashed in,” said Brook. “We’re in an amazing position to go on and win the game.” The Black Caps will have a long, hard look at their fielding as they reflect on their poor position after five dropped catches helped Brook to his match-turning tally. England skipper Ben Stokes also benefited from a few as he provided the glue for a series of partnerships that pushed the visitors to 499 in response to New Zealand’s 348. Brook had resumed on 132 with England 319-5 and the 25-year-old played with great freedom and some style as he and Stokes put on 159 for the sixth wicket. Defying the new ball, Brook punched his 13th four through covers to move past the 150 mark before blasting a huge six on to a grandstand roof. By the time he got an edge on a Matt Henry delivery and was caught behind, Brook had hit 15 fours and three sixes in his 197-ball knock to take his batting average in three Tests in New Zealand to 100. Henry (4-84) also finally dismissed Stokes for 80 but England’s tail wagged hard with Gus Atkinson adding 48 runs off 36 balls and Carse an unbeaten 33 from 24. Woakes (3-39) had failed to take a wicket in the first innings but wasted no time in removing Latham for one before Carse (3-22) and Atkinson combined to send back Conway for eight. Williamson became the first New Zealander to accumulate 9,000 test runs on his way to his 61, a rare highlight on a largely dismal day for the home fans. “Fielding’s something we pride ourselves on and that’s the part that hurts,” said Henry. “We had some really good partnerships in there, but unfortunately a couple of wickets late in the day hurt us.” NEW ZEALAND (1st Innings) 348 (K. Williamson, G. Phillips 58 not out; B. Carse 4-64, S. Bashir 4-69) ENGLAND (1st Innings, overnight 319-5): Z. Crawley lbw Henry 0 B. Duckett c Conway b O’Rourke 46 J. Bethell c Blundell b Smith 10 J. Root b Smith 0 H. Brook c Blundell b Henry 171 O. Pope c Phillips b Southee 77 B. Stokes c Southee b Henry 80 C. Woakes c Latham b Southee 1 G. Atkinson c Phillips b Smith 48 B. Carse not out 33 S. Bashir c Southee b Henry 5 EXTRAS (B-2, LB-14, NB-6, W-6) 28 TOTAL (all out, 103 overs) 499 FALL OF WICKETS: 1-9 (Crawley), 2-43 (Bethell), 3-45 (Root), 4-71 (Duckett), 5-222 (Pope), 6-381 (Brook), 7-382 (Woakes), 8-445 (Atkinson), 9-485 (Stokes) BOWLING: Southee 20-4-85-2; Henry 23-5-84-4 (1nb); Smith 26-0-141-3 (5nb); O’Rourke 25-2-138-1 (2w); Phillips 9-0-35-0 T. Latham c Brook b Woakes 1 D. Conway c Atkinson b Carse 8 K. Williamson lbw Woakes 61 R. Ravindra c Bethell b Carse 24 D. Mitchell not out 31 T. Blundell c Pope b Woakes 0 G. Phillips lbw Carse 19 N. Smith not out 1 EXTRAS (LB-1, NB-7, W-2) 10 TOTAL (for six wickets, 49 overs) 155 FALL OF WICKETS: 1-3 (Latham), 2-23 (Conway), 3-64 (Ravindra), 4-133 (Williamson), 5-133 (Blundell), 6-153 (Phillips) STILL TO BAT: T. Southee, M. Henry, W. O’Rourke BOWLING: Woakes 13-1-39-3 (2nb); Atkinson 13-2-37-0 (4nb); Carse 12-3-22-3 (2w, 1nb); Bashir 9-0-47-0; Stokes 2-0-9-0