Flintoff leads Lancashire as Yorkshire collapse

Aug 10 2007 by Our Correspondent, Liverpool Daily Post

ROSES connoisseurs who turned up at Headingley yesterday looking for reassurance that the resolute traditions of this fixture remained intact had to wait until the late afternoon for their hopes to be realised.

But unless they were Lancashire supporters, what they watched provided them with little comfort.

Mark Chilton and Paul Horton, both of them left out of the first XI at various times in the past nine days, put on 66 for the first wicket as the Red Rose side utterly bossed the first day of the LV Championship game against their old enemy in a manner that supporters who had watched the capitulations at Liverpool and Edgbaston must have found difficult to believe.

Under the cosh for a day and a half last week, Lancashire’s players handed out serious punishment of their own yesterday, dismissing Yorkshire for 144 in 55.5 delicious overs before replying with 146 for 2 by the close with Horton 82 not out. The only downsides for the travelling fans were the run out of Chilton for 24 by a Joe Sayers direct hit, and a harsh lbw decision against Brad Hodge.

“Paul Horton’s a fine cricketer and he’s played a blinder there today,” said Andrew Flintoff, “It’d be nice if he went on and got a hundred tomorrow.”

Making the most of both the new ball and any moisture in a wicket, Glen Chapple caught the edge of Craig White’s bat with the fifth delivery of the match and then had Anthony McGrath leg before wicket next ball playing no shot.

Younus Khan also collected a golden duck when Sajid Mahmood knocked back his off stump with a swinging full toss and the Lancashire paceman struck again when he had Joe Sayers caught down the leg-side by Luke Sutton.

Andrew Gale’s attempt to steady his side ended when he hooked Chapple straight and hard to Gary Keedy at long-leg.

Having ripped the heart out of the Yorkshire batting, Chapple and Mahmood gave way to Muttiah Muralitharan and Flintoff, but this duo could only claim the wicket of Gerard Brophy, caught at silly point off the Sri Lankan for 18.

It was almost a surprise when Rashid carelessly chipped an nondescript Chapple delivery straight to Paul Horton at square leg just before lunch.

In the afternoon Flintoff’s hostile and accurate 6.3 over spell accounted for the last three Yorkshire batsmen and also provided further confirmation of his recovery form a third ankle operation. “We started the game well getting three wickets in the first two overs,” said Flintoff, “It was always going to be difficult for them coming back from that.”

SUMMARIES: LV County Championship - Division OneCanterbury Kent First Innings: 150. R W T Key 75no Harbhajan Singh 5-34 Second Innings: 171. J C Tredwell 50 Harbhajan Singh 6-57 Surrey First Innings: 215. M R Ramprakash 61 S A Newman 57 J C Tredwell 6-47 Second Innings: 108-6 . Surrey (18pts) beat Kent (3pts) by 4 wkts The Rose Bowl Hampshire First Innings: 455-9 dec. M A Carberry 116 J P Crawley 96 M J Brown 73 N Pothas 71no G J Batty 6-125 Second Innings: 103-8 dec. M J Lumb 57 Worcestershire First Innings: 86. J T A Bruce 4-31 D B L Powell 4-8 Second Innings: 24-0 . Hove Warwickshire First Innings: 433. I J Westwood 110 T R Ambrose 99 K C Sangakkara 59 D L Maddy 53 Saqlain Mushtaq 5-96 Mushtaq Ahmed 4-170 Second Innings: 77-2 . Sussex First Innings: 168. L J Wright 61 A J Shantry 4-31 J E Anyon 4-62 LV County Championship - Division Two Grace Road Leicestershire First Innings: 274. J Allenby 83 T Lungley 4-110 Derbyshire First Innings: 68-6 . Southend Gloucestershire First Innings: 278. C M Spearman 75 Kadeer Ali 65 Second Innings: 139. S J Adshead 50 Danish Kaneria 4-30 A J Bichel 4-34 Essex First Innings: 88. S P Kirby 5-41 J Lewis 5-41 Second Innings: 161-4 . Colwyn Bay Glamorgan First Innings: 465. A G Wharf 111no D L Hemp 82 R N Grant 79 Northamptonshire First Innings: 115-6 . R E Watkins 4-45 Trent Bridge Nottinghamshire First Innings: 350. S P Fleming 145 M A Wagh 51 A R Caddick 4-69 Second Innings: 9-0 . Somerset First Innings: 452. C L White 124 P D Trego 67 I D Blackwell 58 G P Swann 4-125 Tour Match Riverside Sri Lanka A First Innings: 379. K T G D Prasad 89 T T Samaraweera 79 M D K Perera 57 Second Innings: 162-6 . Durham First Innings: 220. L J Goddard 52 U W M B C A Welegedara 5-45