BIRMINGHAM – The West Indies "A" team had a tough time on the opening day of the latest match of their England tour at Edgbaston yesterday.

They were bowled out for 235 by Warwickshire's novice attack on a lively pitch in cool, cloudy conditions, leaving the county's openers, left-hander Ian Westwood and the experienced Mark Wagh (not to be confused with the former Australian batsman) to survive 8.4 testing overs from Daren Powell and Tino Best to be 15 without loss when fading light ended the first day of the three-day match.

Sent in after Warwickshire captain Alex Loudon won the toss, West Indies' second stringers were immediately set back when openers Sewnarine Chattergoon, who edged to the wicket-keeper, and Lendl Simmons, taken at slip, were dismissed before a run was scored.

Only a confident 79 by Runako Morton and 56 from the last two wickets carried them past 200.

Warwickshire used only four bowlers to complete the job. Adam Shantry, a 23-year-old in his sixth first-class match and his first for Warwickshire, created most of the problems with sharp left-arm swing, finishing with five for 49 from 14 overs.

Chris Woakes, a tall, 17-year-old medium-pacer on his first-class debut, ended a third-wicket revival of 72 between Morton and captain Sylvester Joseph by bowling Joseph for a patient 24 that occupied an hour and 20 minutes.

Woakes removed 19-year-old left-hander Jason Mohammed, playing his first match of the tour, to a wicket-keeper's catch 21 runs later.

Morton, whose scores in the previous first-class matches were 105 and 13 not out against Durham and 86 against Leicestershire, once more batted impressively, hitting 15 fours off the 121 balls he received. It carried his average to 93.33 on tour.

Morton and wicket-keeper Patrick Browne put on 37 for the fifth wicket. But after Morton fell to medium-pacer Tim Groenwald, a South African studying at Cambridge University, Shantry returned to account for Browne, Darren Sammy and Richard Kelly.

Belligerent batting by No. 9 Tino Best (18 off 30 balls with three fours), No. 10 Daren Powell (31 not out off 29 balls with six fours) and No. 11 Dave Mohammed (19 off 10 balls with three fours and the only six of the innings) earned welcome runs for West Indies A.

SCOREBOARD:

SCORES on the first day of the three-day match between West Indies A and Warwickshire at Edgbaston yesterday:

West IndiesA 1st innings

L.Simmons c Loudon b Tahir 0

S.Chattergoon c Frost b Shantry 0

R. Morton c Frost b Groenewald 76

*S. Joseph b Woakes 29

J.Mohammed c Frost b Woakes 4

+P. Browne lbw b Shantry 29

D Sammy c Loudon b Shantry 10

R.Kelly b Shantry 8

T.Best c Groenewald b Shantry 18

D.Powell not out 31

D.Mohammed c Frost b Tahir 19

Extras (lb 6, w 1, nb 4) 11

TOTAL (all out, 58.1 overs) 235

Wickets fell at: 0 (Chattergoon), 0 (Simmons), 72

(Joseph), 93 (J.Mohammed), 130 (Morton), 153 (Browne),

160 (Sammy), 179 (Kelly), 196 (Best), 235

(D.Mohammed).

Bowling: Tahir 17.1-4-57-2 (nb3). Shantry 14-6-49-5.

Groenewald 14-2-59-1 (w1). Woakes 13-2-64-2.

Warwickshire 1st innings

I.Westwood not out 10

M.Wagh not out 5

Extras 0

TOTAL (no wicket, 8.4 overs) 15

Bowling: Powell 4.4-2-7-0. Best 4-2-8-0.

Toss: Warwickshire.

Umpires: N.Cowley, A.Jones.

(PR)