Day 2 of 4: New Zealand 490-8 dec (T Blundell 186, R Ravindra 121, D Foxcroft 98, K Williamson 36; M Adair 3-66) lead Ireland 179 (A McBrine 73no, M Adair 40; N Smith 6-40, B Sears 2-27) & 65-2 (S Doheny 36no) by 246 runs.Not for the first time, Andy McBrine was left stranded while eyeing up a maiden Test century. A difficult day needed some sort of individual milestone to give Irish eyes something to smile about on their way down the Dundonald Road. McBrine, who should have a Test hundred given his record when bailing Ireland out of trouble with the bat, ran out of partners on 73, the last unbeaten batter as New Zealand tore through the Irish top order to move within touching distance of a hefty victory at the close of day two.Already in a good position with 350 on the board overnight, Kiwi debutant Dean Foxcroft fell marginally short of a hundred of his own. His dismissal on 98 prompted New Zealand to declare on 490 for eight, eyeing up a chance to make inroads against an Irish line-up worn out by a lengthy stint in the field.Within half-an-hour, Ireland were in disarray. Six wickets fell for the addition of just 38 runs, Nathan Smith tearing through the top order with a five-wicket haul.McBrine combined with Mark Adair as Ireland’s lower middle-order once again kept humiliation at bay, albeit not enough men stuck around for McBrine to find three figures.After asking Ireland to follow on, New Zealand took two wickets in the second innings, leaving them with eight more to get on day three with Ireland needing 247 runs to force their visitors to bat again.Ireland’s Reuben Wilson celebrates after getting his maiden Test wicket on Thursday. Photograph: Nick Elliott/Inpho Sentimentality can be rare in elite sport, but the Black Caps found room for some with Foxcroft. After Tom Blundell holed out in the deep to Reuben Wilson for 186 – offering the 19-year-old his first Test wicket – Foxcroft kept at it to approach three figures. Once 450 was reached for the team total, New Zealand would likely have been comfortable to declare. Instead, captain Tom Latham let the 28-year-old hunt the milestone.When sweeping McBrine’s off-spin to Wilson at short fine leg, Foxcroft fell agonisingly short with 98 runs to his name. Latham, to the surprise of no one, called his charges in for a half-hour spell at the Irish top order before lunch.The move worked wonders. Second ball of the chase, Smith swung one past the edge of Stephen Doheny and into his back pad. It looked a marginal call, potentially hitting outside the line. Umpire Rod Tucker raised the finger.Four balls later, Cade Carmichael joined his team-mate in the hutch, nicking into the slip cordon to leave Ireland two down with nothing on the board just six balls into their reply.A worse result barely seemed possible. Fortunes nevertheless found another depth to plunge towards after lunch, Ireland losing four wickets in a 20-minute span, Kiwi skill and discipline proving too much for a top order desperately short of practice against a moving red ball.Andrew Balbirnie missed a straight one to be bowled by Smith. Ditto Curtis Campher when struck on the pad, a failure to score that sees him claim the unwanted record of most Test match ducks for Ireland. Harry Tector saw one swing late on to his front pad, another marginal decision going against the Irish, before Lorcan Tucker also departed to the rampant Smith.Ireland’s Lorcan Tucker is bowled out by New Zealand's Nathan Smith of New Zealand. Photograph: Nick Elliott/Inpho Enter McBrine and Adair. Ireland have had seven total century partnerships in their Test history, and three have come from these two. The former was quick to punish width outside off, the latter overcoming an overnight illness to land a series of blows through the covers.Once Adair went for 40, thoughts turned to if McBrine could find someone to hang around long enough to escort him to three figures. Tom Mayes, Liam McCarthy and Wilson all departed for single figures, leaving McBrine to trudge off unbeaten on 73 and New Zealand contemplating the follow on.If they wanted their batters to have another hit before facing England next week, the Black Caps ignored them. Going for the kill and an innings victory, they stuck Ireland back in.Two further wickets fell, Balbirnie nicking a wider delivery while Carmichael fell in the cordon for the second time in the match. Doheny did at least persevere to 36, showing a bit of fight alongside nightwatchman Mayes.Still, with the deficit at 246, Ireland are staring down a barrel that could end the game early on Friday, should New Zealand’s bowlers turn the screw.Although underprepared for Test cricket, the manner of some of the dismissals will nevertheless grate in how straightforward scalps were handed to the visiting attack. That and some of the umpiring decisions.Still, at least there was McBrine, ensuring Ireland avoided total calamity for the umpteenth time in his red ball career.