YORKSHIRE teenager Karl Carver yesterday proved he can be a worthy early-season replacement spinner for England’s Adil Rashid by taking two wickets against Leeds/Bradford MCC Universities at Headingley.

The students, replying to Yorkshire’s day one 329-9 declared, slipped from 62-0 in their first innings to 141-8 before being bowled out for 202 during the afternoon session of day two.

Carver removed George Scott and Joe Ellis-Grewal but it was his control that will have pleased captain Andrew Gale and coach Jason Gillespie just as much.

The 19-year-old’s first 11 overs included the wicket of Scott caught behind by Andrew Hodd before lunch and cost him only 11 runs.

He returned to wrap up the innings by getting Ellis-Grewal caught at slip reverse sweeping deep into the afternoon, and finished with 2-33 from 15 overs to boost confidence ahead of Sunday’s Championship opener against Worcestershire.

With Rashid in the Caribbean on Test duty, Carver is set to play his second Championship match at New Road having debuted impressively against Warwickshire last summer.

Yorkshire’s second innings stuttered to 126-6 at close, including 32 for Gale and 31 for Jack Leaning, but the lead is 253 heading into tomorrow’s final day.

Yorkshire’s bowling attack took six wickets in the morning before having to combat some afternoon resistance from ninth-wicket pair Liam Watkinson and Ellis-Grewal (42), who batted for 14.4 overs.

Like Carver, Steve Patterson also picked up two wickets. Tim Bresnan and Will Rhodes struck once apiece

But on the day that two of Yorkshire’s England players in Adam Lyth and Gary Ballance were named by the Wisden Almanack as two of their five Cricketers of the Year, it was another England hopeful, Jack Brooks, who also impressed against the students.

Despite touring with the Lions in the winter alongside Ballance and Lyth, Brooks missed out on a maiden senior call-up despite an impressive 68 Championship wickets in 2014.

But he has started 2015 in good form, adding 3-41 from 14 overs in this ongoing first-class friendly to five against the MCC in Abu Dhabi last month.