Well, we have the lead and we're seeing people say that we're in control of this game ahead of the fourth day. I reckon it's still very even, Ian Bell and Alistair Cook are at the crease and they are well established, we need the bowlers to ruffle a few feathers.

But day three, I can't really elaborate much more on Kane Williamson. The kid goes absolutely fabulous.

What was more intriguing were the performances of the other notable run scorers from day three; Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum and BJ Watling.

Taylor is clearly struggling, he's not in vintage, free-flowing Rossco form. But he's scoring runs and it's probably just as impressive given that the Taylor of old, would have probably just got out. It always felt like Taylor was a bit rocks or diamonds, obviously the diamonds bit has made him one of the better batsmen in the world, but there were many times where he struggled to stick it out. 

Only Corey Anderson with his 9 off 20 balls, had a lower strike rate than Taylor. Anderson's was 45.00 while Taylor's was 45.99 and it's very strange for Taylor, but I really like it.

The skipper came to the crease in the exact position that we want him there, runs scored, hard work done which allows McCullum to play naturally. McCullum said before the game that Mike Hesson had encouraged the team to play like they did in the backyard, have fun, do what comes naturally to them and it's clear that this implies for McCullum. 

The McCullum-hater would point to his dismissal as a bit daft, throwing his wicket away. But having the platform laid down by the top order gives McCullum the chance to score quickly which has a big impact on proceedings. 

Especially when Watling is there waiting in the wings. I love him.

Watling is a grafter, but we saw some nice strokes from him which was a pleasure. The one-two punch of McCullum and Corey Anderson in the middle order is so much better with Watling there, I doubt we'll see all three of these lads fail in an innings too often.

The other impressive aspect of Watling's batting is his work with the tail. All our bowlers love to give the ball a whack, which is great, I'd rather that than them fluffing around the 21 runs from Tim Southee and Matt Henry could be crucial. That constant factor though was Watling.

600 would have been golden, but given that England bowled pretty damn well in conditions that offered a wee bit and 523 was a nice effort. 

Then came the early wickets of Adam Lyth thanks to Trent Boult while Tim Southee did Gary Ballance with a ripper. But England are fighting and after we saw their young brigade do the business in the first innings, the two veterans will start day four with visions of carrying their team through day four.

It's going to be a big day for Mark Craig. Our seam bowlers will need to do their bit and that includes Corey Anderson who only bowled five overs in the first innings, but Craig. There should be some spin and this is where you need your number one spinner to show what they've got in their arsenal. 

England got a look at Craig in the first innings and now they know what he's generally about, this is where Craig needs to at least take a few wickets. 

Day Four Mission Objective: Limit the damage. England might have a good day with the bat, but it's important for the Black Caps to chip away and not let them off the hook as much as they did on day one.

Enjoy Ya Dinner: BJ Watling, enjoy ya sleep as well.

Daily Thought: Would you rather have Tim Southee or Stuart Broad batting to win a Test/save a Test?