Given a fair wind, this third of England's three pre-series warm-up matches would have been about fine-tuning the preparations. Three years ago, indeed, at the equivalent stage, the Test XI had long since been chosen and while the rest of the team went on to beat Australia A in Hobart, David Saker, the bowling coach, had taken the pace attack to acclimatise in Brisbane. Things could not have been better.

The weather has not been kind though, and nor has the Australian domestic schedule. Because of Western Australia's Sheffield Shield commitments, a weakened side was put out against England for the opener in Perth while the second game in Hobart, against Australia A, was a washout for pretty much everyone except Alastair Cook and Michael Carberry, who filled their boots on the first day before the rain ruined the match. And so to Sydney, where Shield matches again meant no state opposition and a scratch side produced instead that initially went under the New South Wales Invitation banner, and then, when the state cricket authority appeared to wash its hands of proceedings, became a Cricket Australia Invitation side.

It produced a mixed day for the visitors. While workmen hammered and bashed away at the City end in their endeavour to complete the new Noble stand in time for the New Year Test, England opted to field first, had the opposition five down for 93 shortly after lunch with the downfall of Ed Cowan, whose gritty half century had held the batting together, but then failed to take another wicket in the remaining 58 overs as the home captain, Peter Nevill (76 not out), and Ryan Carters (94 not out), wicketkeepers both, added an unbroken 178 for the sixth wicket. The Invitation XI finished the day at 271 for five.

The good thing to emerge from the day was the bowling of Stuart Broad, who is sufficiently familiar with his game to understand how to bring himself to the boil. He bowled accurately and incisively, claiming three for 36 from 20 overs, good wickets too, with a legcutter accounting for Aaron Finch, a nip-backer for Callum Ferguson, and Ben Rohrer removed by a remarkable one-handed catch by Carberry at backward point as the batsman, prematurely, envisaged four easy runs. Broad at least will be ready in a week's time.

But with Broad's success came the intrigue as to the identity of the pace bowler who will complete the Brisbane trio along with him and Jimmy Anderson, who is absent from this match. Chris Tremlett was not seen marking out his run pre-match either, which meant there was an opportunity for Steve Finn and Boyd Rankin to make a case for inclusion.

What is in the mind of the coach Andy Flower and Cook is hard to discern. An interpretation on one hand would have Tremlett ruled out of contention for the Gabba, leaving Finn and Rankin to slug it out for a place instead. On the other hand, it may be that they have seen sufficient of Tremlett to want him in and do not wish to risk him further before the match. In which case whatever Finn and Rankin managed would be rendered irrelevant unless injuries crop up.

Tremlett's figures on the tour so far are unremarkable – just a single wicket in 37 overs – but neither Finn nor Rankin have produced bowling of the calibre managed by Broad. Of the pair, it was Rankin given the new ball with Broad who impressed more with his control, stemming from an excellent strong repeating action. But he failed to take a wicket, and never looked like doing so, as he plugged away outside offstump and consistently a yard or more shorter than ideal. If dry bowling is what England are seeking then he could certainly do that, but it was hardly incisive.

Yet it was Finn, who began in mediocre fashion but improved as the day progressed, who took wickets, something he has the valuable knack of doing, the concern being that he does so at a cost, leaking runs at such a rate at times that it puts additional strain on the rest of the attack to claw back a position.

He might be considered a lucky bowler too, although there was none of that in the manner that Cook snaffled a low chance to first slip to dismiss Kurtis Patterson. Poor Cowan, though. As the wickets fell he battled his stoical way through to an unbeaten 51 at lunch – having at one time been hit flush on the helmet by Finn as he was early attempting to hook a sluggish bouncer – but then failed to add to that after the interval. Finn dropped horribly and unwittingly short, a rank long-hop, the ball standing up to be hit. But so slothful was it from the pitch that Cowan, fetching it to leg from outside off stump, could only pull it disbelievingly straight to Jonathan Trott at midwicket.