Dogged Gloucestershire finally succumb to hand Glamorgan deserved opening win

Matthew Mott’s men dismissed the West Country outfit for 195 as they celebrated their first LV County Championship Division Two win of the summer.

Chris Taylor was the last man to fall for a defiant 83 after Gloucestershire lost their last six wickets for 31 runs in 10.1 overs.

Gloucestershire resumed the final day on 42 without loss, needing 343 more for victory, but their sole intention was to save the game. Richard Coughtrie continued to anchor the innings while partner Ian Cockbain blazed his way towards 50.

But when Adam Shantry trapped Cockbain lbw on 47, the visitors were still 323 short.

A moment of fielding magic followed from Gareth Rees when his direct hit caught Coughtrie napping at the far end and run out for 23.

Towards lunch, the ball starting to turn on the fourth day pitch and Dean Cosker took a great catch at short mid-wicket to dismiss opposition skipper Alex Gidman for seven, off the bowling of his own captain Alviro Petersen, who claimed his first wicket for Glamorgan.

Gloucestershire reached 118-3 at lunch with Taylor standing firm.

Glamorgan lost the services of Jim Allenby who did not reappear in the afternoon session because of injury, while Graham Wagg was also unable to bowl because of a hamstring problem suffered in the first innings

Glamorgan were initially forced to rely on spinners Cosker and Petersen as Taylor brought ups his 50 in the afternoon session in 91 balls, including eight fours.

Taylor survived on 59 when Ben Wright just failed to gain a hard catch at mid-wicket off Cosker’s bowling before four wickets fell for 13 runs in 31 balls with James Harris and Adam Shantry taking a couple of victims each.

Harris struck with the second new ball when he bowled Jon Batty for 23 and claimed a second wicket to dismiss Will Gidman who edged to Mark Wallace for one.

Shantry struck in successive balls in the next over to dismiss Ian Saxelby and Jon Lewis. Rees took a bat pad catch to dismiss Saxelby before Lewis struck his first ball straight to Wright at cover.

Spinner Cosker took a wicket with the first ball of his new spell with Rees taking the catch at short leg to dismiss Vikram Banerjee. And with Gloucestershire missing Chris Dent who was unable to bat because of a broken finger, the game was over.

A Chris Woakes-inspired Warwickshire crushed last year’s LV= County Championship Division One runners-up Somerset by an innings and 382 runs on day three at Taunton on Saturday.

Woakes claimed nine wickets across the two Somerset innings to add to his run-a-ball 129 with the bat in the Bears’ huge tally of 642.

Somerset resumed this morning on 147-6 in their first innings, still needing 346 to make the Bears bat again and were promptly dismissed for 210.

Warwickshire enforced the follow-on without hesitation and the hosts were even more abject second time around, collapsing to 50 all out as only Craig Kieswetter (13) and Jos Buttler (12) made double figures.

Champions Nottinghamshire got their defence off to a winning start as they wrapped up a nine-wicket victory over Hampshire at Trent Bridge.

New Zealander Andre Adams was their trump card, claiming career-best match figures of 11-85 as he ripped through the Hampshire batting line-up with 6-31 in the second innings to add to his first-innings 5-54.

Hampshire were bowled out for just 131, with James Vince unbeaten on 59, and Notts wasted little time in reaching the 23 required for victory.

There were three results in Division Two, with Northamptonshire, Middlesex and Derbyshire all winning.

Jack Brooks took four wickets as Northamptonshire romped to an innings-and-159-run victory over Kent at Wantage Road.

Middlesex reaped the rewards of taking 20 wickets on Friday to wrap up an eight-wicket success against Essex at Lord’s.

Derbyshire defeated Leicestershire by an innings and 32 runs at Derby.