STEVEN Finn continued his steep learning curve in front of 35,000 partisan supporters as England and Australia cranked up their Ashes battle at the Gabba.

England's 21-year-old international novice fast bowler was in the thick of the action too during a titanic half-hour after lunch when the first Test lurched England's way today.

It proved a temporary surge which helped the tourists take four wickets for 72 runs in the middle session.

A rain-shortened day two of the series ended marginally in favour of Australia, thanks to back-to-form veteran Michael Hussey's unbeaten 81 in an unbroken stand of 77 with Brad Haddin.

The hosts therefore closed on 220 for five, in reply to England's apparently under-par 260 all out.

Hussey needed to be at his resourceful best, unfurling a succession of merciless pulls in his 144-ball stay so far, to defy England's resurgent bowlers.

Among them, James Anderson was the pick in an outstanding spell of 11-6-18-2 from the Stanley Street end either side of lunch.

Finn was sufficiently self aware to acknowledge others led the way, and that he needs to learn from them.

"I thought the other bowlers bowled fantastically well,’’ said Finn, who almost had Hussey first ball - the edge dropped just short of Graeme Swann at second slip - and finished with two for 61.

The 6ft 8in seamer's first wicket came via an athletic caught-and-bowled down by his boots to see off limpet opener Simon Katich for a painstaking 50.

"Wickets give you confidence,’’ he added.

"But there are still areas of my bowling that obviously I need to work on, having been hit for a few fours today, and it's something I'm looking to improve every time I bowl.’’ Finn's phlegmatic demeanour is at odds with his trade, but is an evident asset for a cricketer plunged into the Ashes after just eight Tests in less than a year.

"It's just another game of cricket,’’ he believes.

"It's what you build it up to be in your head, and it was important I didn't build it up to be too big.

"That would have been detrimental to my performance.

"I'm used to playing (county) championship cricket in front of 20 people.

"But to have so many people watching has been fantastic. I'm loving it at the moment.

"A few times today, it didn't quite go to plan. But I'm young; I'm learning all the time - and it's important that I keep doing that and come back better.’’ He is not too proud either to listen to those who have learned already.

"Jimmy's played 50 odd Tests and taken nearly 200 wickets, so he's obviously a very, very good bowler - and he's been an ever-present in the side for a long time,’’ he said.

"I look up to him obviously. To have him and Broady [Stuart Broad] around me who have bowled a lot of balls in Test match cricket, it's great for me to feed off.

"We're always communicating as a unit. It's not just one bit of advice Jimmy's given me; it's spell-to-spell, ball-to-ball that we're always trying to work out a way of getting batsmen out.’’ He so nearly did so instantaneously when Hussey faced up after Katich's departure.

"It would have been nice had it carried another yard,’’ he shrugged.

Finn will not be dwelling on that near miss, but will be seeking to do better next time.

"You look at the guys' economy rates, and I was by far the most expensive.

"Swanny bowled beautifully after his first few overs and deservedly got a wicket - and the other two seamers have gone at two, or just less, an over.

"As a unit we've been brilliant. I need to make sure I put more balls in the right area tomorrow, because that's when I'm most dangerous.’’ He eventually got Michael Clarke caught behind, Matt Prior's 100th Test victim, but thought he had the Australia vice-captain for a duck off an inside edge much earlier - only for umpire Aleem Dar, and then DRS, to see things differently.

Finn is prepared to accept both verdicts.

"I thought there was an edge there; I was convinced there was an edge, because I thought I heard a noise,’’ he confirmed.

"But 'Hotspot' didn't see anything, and you have to respect that.

"On the basis of the evidence, the umpire got it right.

"We were convinced there was a nick there - that's why the review was called - but 'Hotspot' showed differently.

"Obviously, when decisions don't go your way you're disappointed. But we can't let it affect our performance.

"That's something we've done really well, coming back. Jimmy got a wicket a couple of balls after a decision was overturned.’’ Hussey knew too the day might have turned out very differently for him and Australia, after his narrow escape first ball.

"It just goes to show how much of the game is a fine line,’’ he said.

"Nicking that first one, I was hoping and praying it would fall short - and luckily it did.

"A foot or so more, and I would have been gone for a first-ball duck.

"But instead, I'm still there at the close - which is a nice feeling.’’