[themaclad]

Both sides get an immediate opportunity to bounce back from opening round defeats; Lancashire against Leicestershire at New Road and Durham at home to Yorkshire.

The Red Rose were on the wrong end of a thrilling finale in Worcester, with Leicester chasing down a target of 150 in the final 17 overs to win by seven wickets.

A trio of debutants in George Balderson, Tom Hartley and Ed Moulton showed promise, but the experience of Foxes batting duo Ben Slater and Colin Ackermann proved too much.

A number of more experienced heads are set to return from England One-Day International duty or injury, giving the team a different look in the North East as they bid to get on a roll which will put them in contention for top spot in the North and with it a final appearance.



TEAM NEWS
Luke Wood missed out against Leicestershire with hip stiffness, though he could make his Lancashire debut in Durham after a winter move from Nottinghamshire.

Richard Gleeson, Liam Livingstone and Saqib Mahmood have all been in England’s squad for the ODI series victory Ireland at Southampton’s Ageas Bowl and could return. Mahmood, however, was the only one who played in the three-match series.

Matthew Parkinson remains sidelined with an ankle injury which ruled him out of that aforementioned series.

Both counties will continue to be without their quartet of England Test players - Jimmy Anderson, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes and Mark Wood - due to the first Test against Pakistan at Emirates Old Trafford.

OPPOSITION
Durham were beaten by six wickets against Yorkshire in a low-scoring contest.

Bowled out for 103 in the first innings, they fought back manfully with ball and then bat to give themselves a sniff of victory. They restricted Yorkshire to a lead of 96 on first innings before reaching 221-3 in their second innings.

Then came the game changer as they lost their last seven wickets for 45 runs to leave Yorkshire chasing only 171. At 4-2, Durham were buoyant again, but they had given themselves just too much to do.

Captained by former Leicestershire wicketkeeper Ned Eckersley, their coach is the former New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin. Their Director of Cricket is ex-Australia and Lancashire batsman Marcus North, who had a brief overseas spell with the county in 2005.

South African David Bedingham has signed a one-year Kolpak deal and impressed against Yorkshire, scoring 77 in the second innings. Opener Alex Lees also hit a fine second-innings century.

Veteran seamer Chris Rushworth will take the new ball. He claimed his 500th First-Class career wicket on Sunday and had a formidable partnership with Onions for many years.

Durham will also have highly-rated England Lions seamer Brydon Carse back in their ranks. He was part of England’s one-day training squad in Southampton prior to the Ireland series and missed the opening round of the Bob Willis Trophy as a result.



PREVIOUS MEETING
The two counties played out a hard-fought draw at the picturesque Sedbergh School in last year’s County Championship Division Two.

After Durham opted to bowl in early July, Rob Jones (52) and Dane Vilas (72) posted fifties in 337 all out before Graham Onions claimed 5-93 against his former and home county to bowl them out for 291.

Lancashire’s 46-run lead was built on with 247 all out in the second innings, including 85 for captain Vilas.

Durham were set 294 before lunch on Day Four, but Australian opener and skipper Cameron Bancroft denied them with a fine 92 not out as they finished on 194-6 after 75 overs.

Durham had slipped to 39-3, but Lancashire’s attack, minus Jimmy Anderson who bowled only 18.2 overs in the first innings due to a calf injury, were unable to convert the early advantage.

Bancroft had hit 77 in the first innings, ensuring both skippers hit two fifties in the match.

WHAT THEY SAID
Fielding three first-class debutants at New Road in George Balderson, Tom Hartley and Ed Moulton certainly had Steven Croft in reflective mood.

“I heard about the stat that the last time Lancashire played three debutants in a First-Class game was when myself, Tom Smith and Simon Marshall debuted against Oxford Uni at the start of 2005,” said the 35-year-old all-rounder.

“George was also born in the year 2000, which was the year I made my second-team debut. It rubs it in that I’m getting on a bit!

“For the last few years we’ve usually had Jimmy (Anderson) or Bunny (Onions) or Shiv (Chanderpaul), so I haven’t been the oldest out there. But it got to that stage.”



Croft has played a small part in the development of the trio. With an eye on coaching post his playing career, the Blackpool-born former captain has been working with the county’s up and comers during recent winters.

“I’ve seen them come through the age-groups, the Emerging Players Programme and the Academy, and I’ve done a bit of work with them,” he said.

“I was in that first cohort, and it’s nice to see others do the same. We’ve produced some great cricketers in the past, and that’s what our system is there for.”

“But there is definitely still value in bringing people in like Keaton Jennings, Woody and Bunny. They are all quality players and people, and our youngsters can learn a lot from them.

“That Championship Division One status will still be there next year, and the young lads will have that experience under their belt,” added Croft. “It increases competition for places, which can only be a positive.”

Croft, who has just started his 16th season as a first-team pro, may be in the latter stages of a memorable career, but his appetite for success has not diminished one bit.

That was evident in his performance against Leicester, hitting 63 and 52 not out, but unfortunately he couldn’t prevent a defeat which dents Lancashire’s chance of success in the Bob Willis Trophy but far from ends it.

The opening round results - wins for Yorkshire, Leicestershire and Derbyshire - certainly point to this being an open group.

“If you get two or three wins, you’ll be there and thereabouts for that top spot in the group,” said Croft.

“But there’s definitely no room for manoeuvre because you haven’t got the games to claw it back like you do in the Championship.”

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Emirates Riverside (day one):
Durham 180: Lees 66; Gleeson 3-32
Lancashire 33-0: Jennings 14*
Durham 0 pts, Lancashire 3 pts
Scorecard
Lancashire are on top after day one of their Bob Willis Trophy match against Durham after bowling out the home side for just 180 at Chester-le-Street.

Richard Gleeson was the oustanding bowler for the visitors, claiming 3-32, with the rest were shared around the attack.

Alex Lees provided the only meaningful resistance for the hosts with a patient 66, while Ben Raine was left stranded on 24 not out at the end of the innings.

The Red Rose had a tricky spell to negotiate before stumps, but closed the day on 33 without loss, trailing the home side by 147 runs.

Relive Saturday's action in the Bob Willis Trophy
Despite their struggles in the first innings against Yorkshire last week, Durham skipper Ned Eckersley opted to bat first on a glorious summer's day.

However, their top-order problems continued, with Sean Dickson falling to a fine one-handed catch from Alex Davies behind the stumps from a swinging Tom Bailey delivery.

Cameron Steel was then pinned lbw, leaving a straight delivery from Luke Wood and David Bedingham played a loose cut shot to a wide delivery from Gleeson and Davies claimed a simple catch.

Lees and Gareth Harte put on 52 for the fourth wicket, which was only ended when Harte's hesitation cost him dear as George Balderson produced a direct hit from backward point.

Lees maintained notched his half-century from 151 deliveries, but that heralded a clatter of wickets ensued.

Jack Burnham fell lbw to Gleeson and though Lees was put down by Jennings on 61 after Wood found his outside edge, it only cost Lancashire five runs as Dane Vilas and Davies combining to run out the opener.

Raine provided some aggression before Gleeson's return from the Finchale End yielded the wicket of Matt Salisbury lbw for one before Liam Livingstone wrapped up the Durham innings by removing Chris Rushworth caught behind.

Lancashire enjoyed a solid start to their reply with Jennings and Davies blunting the new-ball attack of Rushworth and Carse in a nine-over burst at the close.

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Emirates Riverside (day two):
Durham 180: Lees 66; Gleeson 3-32
Lancashire 284-9: Bohannon 75, Wood 46; Salisbury 3-47, Raine 3-48
Lancashire (5 pts) lead Durham (3 pts) by 104 runs with 1 wicket left

Lancashire took control of their Bob Willis Trophy match against Durham on day two at Emirates Riverside, building a lead of 104 runs over the home side.

Josh Bohannon notched the fifth half-century of his first-class career, scoring a patient 75 to provide the foundation of the visitors' 284-9 in reply to Durham's 180 all out

The Red Rose added two batting bonus points to their tally, aided by a valuable knock of 46 from Luke Wood in the lower order.

Durham's bowlers persevered throughout the day with Matt Salisbury and Ben Raine taking three wickets apiece.

However, they face a major effort to launch a comeback on the third day with their hopes in the competition hanging in the balance.

Relive Sunday's action in the Bob Willis Trophy
Lancashire began on 33 without loss but the hosts made immediate inroads as Raine struck three deliveries into the morning session, with Alex Davies late withdrawing his bat on an attempted leave and he edged into the hands of David Bedingham.

Chris Rushworth maintained the intensity from the Lumley End as Keaton Jennings was caught at the third attempt by Alex Lees at third slip.

Bohannon and Dane Vilas grinded to a 50 partnership from 112 balls before Vilas caught on the stoke of lunch for a solid 32.

Liam Livingstone attempted to provide impetus after the restart, but a change of ball resulted in his downfall, driving on the up against Raine, only to edge into the hands of Bedingham for 23.

Bohannon passed 50 by nudging three runs into the off-side from his 129th delivery and after tea, Lancashire pressed on with Wood hitting five boundaries before Bohannon's innings came to an end when he was bowled by Salisbury.

And the spinner ended Wood's hopes of a fifty by knocking out his middle stump before the close.

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Emirates Riverside (day three):
Durham 180 & 110: Burnham 27; Hurt 4-27, Bailey 3-11
Lancashire 308: Bohannon 75, Wood 46; Salisbury 4-57
Lancashire (22 pts) beat Durham (3 pts) by an innings and 18 runs

Lancashire's pace attack bowled out Durham for just 110 at Chester-le-Street to win their first game in the Bob Willis Trophy.

Liam Hurt led the way with 4-27 in only his second first-class match as the visitors completed an innings and 18-run victory.

Tom Bailey (3-11) and Lancashire debutant Luke Wood (2-28) also weighed in with key wickets.

But it was spinner Liam Livingstone who ended a 24-run last-wicket stand between Ben Raine and Chris Rushworth.

Relive Monday's action in the Bob Willis Trophy
Raine (25), David Bedingham (25) and Jack Burnham (27) were the only three Durham batsmen to reach double figures as Hurt ripped out the middle order after Bailey and Wood had done the early damage.

Preston-born Hurt, a former Leicestershire second teamer, made his first-class debut for Lancashire in the final County Championship game of last season.

Earlier, Lancashire batted on long enough to claim a third batting point before being bowled out for 308, having resumed on 284-9.

It gave the Red Rose a lead of 128 - and, by the 21st over they had Durham at 49-7, in danger of not getting past their lowest first-class score in county cricket of 61 against Leicestershire in 2018, and on their way to a second straight defeat.

Durham lost their first four Championship games last season, before recovering well over the second half of the campaign to only just miss out on promotion from Division Two.

But two successive losses in this five-game qualifying group leaves them still bottom of the table and needing to win all their final three games to stand any chance of qualifying for the Lord's final on 1 October.

Durham next meet Leicestershire at Grace Road this Saturday, while Lancs move on to play Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge

[themaclad]

Off to Trent Bridge we go for what is a home game, Notts have lost 17 out of 21 four day games drawing the other four let us hope they don't break their non winning streak



We will also be up against Paul Allott's best mate



Glen Chapple has named a 13-man squad for the Bob Willis Trophy fixture against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.

The Head Coach could play an unchanged XI from last week's win at Durham, with all 11 players again named in his squad.

Saqib Mahmood picked up a slight injury in the final One-Day International against Ireland and has taken longer than hoped to respond, so is not ready to resume four-day cricket. He will continue to train alongside the squad.

Graham Onions is also receiving treatment on a back injury picked up prior to the Leicestershire match and is not available for selection.

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Trent Bridge (day one):
Notts 268-2: Duckett 116, Slater 111*
Lancashire: Yet to bat
Notts 2 pts, Lancs 0 pts
Scorecard
Centuries by Ben Slater and Ben Duckett ensured that Nottinghamshire dominated the first day of their Bob Willis Trophy match against Lancashire at Trent Bridge.

By the time bad light ended play 18.4 overs early the home side were 268 for two with Slater 111 not out and Joe Clarke unbeaten on four.

However, the centre-piece of the day was the 178-run partnership between Slater and Duckett, a stand which has left Steven Mullaney's team well placed to post a formidable total in this game after perhaps their best three sessions of a truncated season.

Slater, who made 172 against Lancashire while on loan recently at Leicestershire, reached his second century in five innings off 194 balls, 14 of which he had hit to the boundary.

But the opener was nothing like as fluent during the afternoon - he had reached his fifty off 63 deliveries before lunch - and it was left to Duckett to push the score along with his typical sweeps and cuts during a second session when Lancashire's bowlers went wicketless.

Relive Saturday's Bob Willis Trophy action
The former Northamptonshire batsman reached his fifty off 69 balls with seven fours, although he was nearly caught when edging Tom Bailey to the right of Keaton Jennings at second slip.

However, four balls after Slater reached three figures, Duckett achieved the same landmark off 139 balls with 16 fours when he clipped Bailey to the fence at square leg.

Four overs later Duckett was leg before wicket for 116 when playing across the line to Bailey but these first two and a bit sessions will have been very welcome to Mullaney's team, who were asked to bat first on a rather cloudy morning.

The home batsmen will now look to post a large total and bat only once in a game which seems likely to be interrupted by rain over the next three days.

The only batsman to be dismissed in the morning session was the former Lancashire opener, Haseeb Hameed, who put on 78 in nearly 90 minutes with Slater and had made 22 when he was leg before wicket to George Balderson when trying to work a good length ball to leg.

That success apart, Lancashire's pace bowlers failed to make the most of the conditions, with Luke Wood so far wicketless on his return to the county he left last autumn.

[themaclad]

Play there was none

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Trent Bridge (day three):
Nottinghamshire 472: Slater 142, Duckett 116, Mullaney 67, Clarke 57
Lancashire 129-6: Croft 37*; Chappell 3-38, Trego 2-32
Lancashire (1 pt) trail Nottinghamshire (7 pts) by 343 runs with four wickets remaining
Scorecard
Nottinghamshire completely dominated day three after piling up 472 against Lancashire at Trent Bridge.

But, although they reduced Lancashire to 129-6, they must still take 14 wickets on the last day if they are to record their first victory in a four-day county match since 2018.

After Zak Chappell took three wickets in a long evening session, Lancs still need 144 to avoid the follow-on.

Earlier, Notts' overnight centurion Ben Slater was finally out for 142.

He was well caught low down in the gully after making his highest score for Notts in a 409-minute innings that began on Saturday morning before Sunday's total wash-out.

Relive Monday's action in the Bob Willis Trophy
After Joe Clarke was out for 57, Lancashire took five further wickets in the session but since they all fell after the 110th over, they did not earn any more bonus points .

Notts skipper Steven Mullaney (67) helped steer the side past the 400-run landmark to claim all five batting points.

The visitors' reply began badly when Keaton Jennings edged Chappell to Lancs old boy Haseeb Hameed at third slip before Alex Davies and Josh Bohannon followed in the space of four balls.

When Liam Livingstone drove loosely at Mullaney and was bowled for 14 Lancashire were 59-4 and there was at least another 90 minutes left to play.

Dane Vilas and Steven Croft combined to put on 50 for the fifth wicket but Chappell returned to claim the vital wicket of Vilas, who was caught behind for 26.

George Balderson was then caught at point off Peter Trego, leaving Croft unbeaten on 37 at the close.

Nottinghamshire captain Steven Mullaney:

"I was going to bowl if I'd won the toss on Saturday and it took two very special performances from Ben Duckett and Ben Slater to apply the pressure. I'm very happy with where we're at.

"It's been a long couple of days but we've backed up the work done by the two Bens. It would have been easy to think the job was done but we wanted to get five batting points, then put Lancashire under pressure.

"I wanted to get as many as we could and now they need 273 to avoid the follow-on, and enforcing the follow-on is going to be our best chance of winning."

Lancashire batsman Steven Croft:

"We controlled the run rate in the morning and the attitude we showed was brilliant but then we're disappointed with the way things went.

"Winning was out of the question this morning and so we were always fighting to save the game.

"But we let ourselves down a bit when it was our turn to bat. It's been a long day and we're disappointed with where we are."

[themaclad]

Bob Willis Trophy, Trent Bridge (day four):
Nottinghamshire 472: Slater 142, Duckett 116
Lancashire 173 & 120-0: Davies 69*, Jennings 37*
Notts (16 pts) drew with Lancashire (9 pts)

Nottinghamshire's Bob Willis Trophy match against Lancashire at Trent Bridge ended in a draw after the visitors lost no wickets in either the afternoon or evening sessions on the final day.

At the end of the match Lancashire were 120-0 with Keaton Jennings on 37 not out and Alex Davies unbeaten on 69.

Nottinghamshire took 16 points from the game to Lancashire's nine and both sides will almost certainly now need to win their last two games to stand any chance of qualifying for the final at Lord's on September 23.

The untroubled ease with which Lancashire's batsmen secured the draw on a blameless pitch made something of a contrast to their first innings, which ended 90 minutes into the first session, with Dane Vilas' side forced to follow on 299 runs behind after being bowled out for 173.

In the morning it had taken Nottinghamshire nearly an hour to take their first wicket of the day when Steven Croft, having reached his fifty off 103 balls, could only fend Tom Barber's excellent bouncer to substitute fielder Liam Patterson-White in the gully.


Croft's departure for 59 brought Luke Wood in, along with the Lancashire skipper, Vilas, who was running for Wood to prevent him further damaging his injured hamstring.

However, Vilas was only in the middle for 25 minutes before Wood skied a low full toss from Barber to Ben Slater at short leg and departed for six.

Tom Bailey hit his first ball for four but was caught at second slip by Ben Duckett when slashing at his second.

In the next over Liam Hurt was caught by Tom Moores off Peter Trego for a single and Lancashire had lost their last three wickets for five runs in eight balls.

Tom Hartley, playing in his second first-class match, was left unbeaten on 13. The 22-year-old had batted longer and faced more balls than anyone else in the innings except Croft.

Trego finished with 3-33, Barber 3-42 and Zak Chappell 3-48.

Nottinghamshire took eight bonus points from the game to Lancashire's one and dominated this match for most of the first seven sessions.

Nevertheless, Steven Mullaney's team are still searching for their first four-day win since June 2018.

[themaclad]

Yarkshire v Lancashire Leeds 22/8/20 to 25/8/20



Lancashire Head Coach, Glen Chapple, has named a 13-man squad for the Bob Willis Trophy match against Yorkshire at Emerald Headingley.

Tall fast bowler George Burrows could make his First-Class debut after being named in the 13. There is also a return for all-rounder Danny Lamb and fast bowler Ed Moulton.

The Red Rose are missing as many as eight players through international call-ups and injuries.

Saqib Mahmood and Liam Livingstone are missing as they join up with England's IT20 squad for the upcomong three-match series against England at Emirates Old Trafford. James Anderson and Jos Buttler are playing in the third Test of the series at The Ageas Bowl, which started today.

Graham Onions is continuing to undergo rehabilitation on a back injury picked up prior to the Leicestershire match at Blackfinch New Road.

Richard Gleeson is also recovering from a back issue that kept him out of the Bob Willis Trophy match against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge. It is hoped he will be available for Vitality Blast.

Luke Wood is recovering well from a hamstring strain picked up during the same game at Trent Bridge.

Matt Parkinson is also recovering well from an ankle sprain picked up in England's bio-secure bubble prior to the Ireland One-Day International series. Again, it is hoped he will be available for Vitality Blast.

If Yorkshire can continue their stranglehold over Lancashire in recent Roses first-class matches this weekend, they will have taken a giant step towards next month’s Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s.

Since claiming twin victories in 2011 – their Championship-title winning campaign – the Red Rose side have not beaten the White Rose in eight attempts.

Yorkshire have won five and drawn the other three, not only securing back-to-back County Championship titles along the way but also the bragging rights.

Yorkshire are handily placed in the race to win the North Group and secure their passage to Lord’s as one of the two best placed group winners.

They are only two points behind Northern leaders Derbyshire having won two and drawn one so far. But there is no time for let up with only two group games remaining against Lancashire, starting on Saturday, and Leicestershire (September 6) – both at Emerald Headingley.

“To be honest, I didn’t know that,” admitted Yorkshire captain Steve Patterson having been told that his side’s unbeaten Roses first-class record stretches back almost nine years.

“You learn something new!

“But Lancs are a good side, and we respect them. We value the players they’ve got in their side.”

Both teams have plenty of thinking to do selection wise having been affected by injuries and international call-ups.

Yorkshire will be without Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan and David Willey after their England T20 call-ups, while Lancashire pair Saqib Mahmood and Liam Livingstone are missing for the same reason.

Yorkshire could welcome back new ball seamer Ben Coad from a tear in his oblique muscle, but Matthew Fisher (abdominal tear) and Gary Ballance (illness) are likely to miss out again.

Third-placed Lancashire have injury concerns over bowlers Graham Onions, Matthew Parkinson and Luke Wood.

“We’re losing two international players against Lancashire (Bairstow and Malan), so we’ll have to bring two batsmen in to fill the gaps,” said Patterson.

“That will be a challenge for us, but it’s how we respond to that challenge.

“From my perspective, it’s about whoever we play we back them. It’s an opportunity for them to learn and showcase what they can do.”

Will Fraine and Tom Loten would seem likely be in contention.

Patterson continued: “We played a pre-season friendly against Lancs – a two-dayer – and we came out on top in quite a positive fashion.

“We’re looking forward to the game and know if we play the quality of cricket we’re capable of, we’ll stand a decent chance.

“We’ve got to push hard and see where we end up come the end of the week.”

Yorkshire (55 points) are two behind group leaders Derbyshire. Essex lead the South on 61 points, while in the Central Worcestershire have 57 points and Somerset 56.

Prior to the start of the competition, given the condensed nature of the five-game group stage, Patterson admitted he expected to see more attacking and creative cricket from captains.

With only two games remaining to secure qualification, that theory comes back into focus.

Lancashire, for example, are sat on 35 points having lost one, won one and drawn one.

Eight teams across the three groups have better records than them at present, meaning it is win or bust for them this weekend.

“I do expect more of that kind of thing – more creative thinking from various teams,” said Patterson.

“I noticed Durham and Leicester set up a game this week, forfeiting innings to try and create a result (it finished in a draw anyway).

“As we get deeper and deeper into the comp, more teams will have to look at that. Teams will be scrambling to give themselves a chance come that last game.

“It will also be interesting to see how teams play it selection wise, certainly coming to the last round.

“There will be teams who you know are definitely out of it, so do they then protect players because that round is smack, bang in the middle of T20?

“Everybody’s finding they are light given injuries, England call-ups and no overseas players, obviously, and it’s a very heavy fixture schedule.”