Kent v Lancs: leaders follow-on as Coles passes 60 red-ball wickets
Thursday 3rd September 2015
Matt Coles took four wickets of 12 Lancashire batsmen to fall on day three as Kent enforced the follow-on after amassing a 311-run lead in the first innings.
The Maidstone-born paceman struck with the second ball of the second innings to remove Karl Brown for his 61st LV= County Chapionship victim of 2015 before James Tredwell bowled Alviro Petersen in the final over of an eventful day.
The Division 2 leaders resumed their first innings with a target of 350 uppermost in their minds – the figure required to clinch the four batting bonus points to secure a return to the top flight.
Yet within 78 overs, the visitors had been skittled for 259 and, were already two wickets down after being made to follow-on for the first time this season.
Having banked four points for their impressive 570 for eight declared, Kent continued to boss the game with the ball as Matt Coles bagged three for 75 to dismiss the visitors by 4.45pm – 162 runs short of avoiding the follow on.
Coles trails only two men in the Division Two wicket-taking charts: Derbyshire's Mark Footitt (63) and Lancashire's Kyle Jarvis whose season is over due to injury with 62.
The 25-year-old was ably supported as Matt Hunn, Darren Stevens and Calum Haggett chipped in with a brace apiece, ensuring Lancashire batted again in the face of a 311-run first innings deficit.
Yet red rose woes continued. Within a flash, opener Brown departed for a second ball duck, trapped on the crease and leg before to give Coles his 61st wicket of the LV= Championship campaign.
Kent had gone into the fixture with little to play for other than end-of-season pride, but to their credit Sam Northeast’s side put in a professional performance in whittling their way through the Lancashire order.
They hosts fielded sharply and bowled tight lines to pick up five wickets in the first session.
Haseeb Hameed (14) nicked a Stevens away-swinger to the cordon and Alviro Petersen was pinned lbw three balls later by the same bowler to depart without scoring.
Ashwell Prince, so often a thorn in Kentish sides, reached 17 before he aimed to cut a Hunn off-cutter that cramped the left-hander and resulted in a catch behind the wicket.
Karl Brown did his bit to stop the rot with an 86-ball 50, but his airy drive soon after the landmark was snaffled at the second attempt by Ben Harmison at third slip.
Alex Davies (4) made a late decision to try and shoulder arms, but only succeeded in deflecting the delivery from Coles onto the base of middle stump to send the visitors wobbling in at lunch on 104 for five.
Visiting skipper Steven Croft dug in to bat time thereafter, reaching a 108-ball half-century for his part in a sixth-wicket stand with Jordan Clark (44) that ended when the all-rounder feathered one from Haggett to the slips.
Tom Bailey (18) perished just before tea when driving over a Tredwell arm ball, but worse followed after the interval when Lancashire lost their last three wickets for 17 runs.
Glen Chapple (8) top-edged a hook to long leg, Simon Kerrigan (2) nicked a leg-glance to the keeper and, 15 short of his hundred and with only the last man for company, Croft aimed to leg to be pinned lbw by Coles.
Lancashire’s dismal match continued when, with only two balls of the day remaining, Petersen was bowled following a hot-blooded advance to Tredwell and attempted slog towards cow corner.
Day 4 of Kent v Lancashire: £5 entry on the gate for adults, free for Under 16s. No parking in the Simon Langton Girls Grammar, on ground only.