CC1 Penultimate End Game v Yorks in Leeds

And so we move into the end of the Championship.  If we are to win this thing then this game will tell us what to do in the last home game next week.  3 games will effect the situation, we have control over only one as we meet Yorkshire at Headingley.  Lewis Goldsworthy misses out to Archie Vaughan and Jake Ball is chosen instead of Josh Shaw.  The rest of the side is the one that took Leicestershire down in 2 and a half days.  Yorkshire won the toss and will take to the crease first.

CC1 - v Yorkshire @ Headingley Tuesday 15 September 2026

Somerset are still at the top of the CC1 table but only by 4 points and therefore other games are very much in the county's eyeline over the next 4 days.  Neverthless we only have influence over one game and that starts on time at 10:30.  Yorkshire won the toss and will bat first.

The team is the one that faced Leicestershire last week;

Thomas, Lammonby, Abell, Nicholls, Rew (wk), Vaughan, Overton, Gregory (c), Pretorius, Leach Ball

Lewis Goldsworthy and Josh Shaw miss out for this game.

Yorkshire really need to win this game as they have the hardest run in with Yorkshire away and Surrey at home.  Notts and Warwickshire will do what they do and we will have to work with that.  The weather is variable in Leeds with some cloud and blue sky.  The ground has a smattering of spectators but pretty sparse to be honest for the first day of the last CC1 game for the home side..

Adam Lyth and Will Luxton face Lewis Gregory for the first ball.  They take 4 from the first over (in the form of leg byes) but neither bat is off the mark as Migael Pretorius takes the first from the rugby stand end.  Both openers manage to get off the mark in this over and they finish with 6 on the scoreboard.

The two Yorkshire openers settle into their routines until the start of the 7th over when Gregory gets one high on Lyth's bat and he guides the ball straight into the hands of Henry Nicholls at first slip.  Lyth goes for 11 from 26 and Yorkshire are 30 for 1.  The third Yorkshire bat is Sam Whiteman and he fininshes the 7th without scoring so it is a wicket maiden for the captain.  The ball seems to be carrying through to the slips really well this morning as the report is that the pitch is 'rock hard'.

We see how well it carries in the 9th over when Gregory repeats the Lyth dismissal by having Luxton guide the ball to Tom Abell at second sllip for 22 from 19.  Yorkshire are 39 for 2 from 2 outside edges.  Number four in the home side line-up is James Wharton.  Suddenly there are a new pair of bats at the crease with 1 run between them and a Yorkshire start has turned into a Yorkshire rebuilding exercise.

After 10 the score has moved to 39 for 2 and has only added 1 run by the time Craig Overton joins the attack replacing Migael for the 12th.  At the end of the 15th they have added only 10 and during Cove's 16th they move past 50 with a Whiteman single.  50 off 92 balls with Whiteman on 10 from 27 and Wharton only on 1 from 21.

Jake Ball is now his bowling partner after replacing Lewis for the 15th and he has yet to give away a run.  The two bats look in trouble against both bowlers with Wharton only managing 5 but it is Whiteman who finishes the struggle with Jake as he chops him on in the 19th to leave for 14 from 37 at 58 for 3.  This brings in Matthew Revis ahead of Jonny Bairstow and gives Somerset their first bowling point.

Gregory seems to think there is something in this pitch as he brings himself on after 2 for 26 off his first 7.  He comes back on for the 22nd to give Wharton a bit more to wonder about.  However the next wixcket comes from something we all say never happens as Wharton takes on Josh Thomas for a quick single to his left hand and loses the race.  The left hander directly hits from midwicket on the run and Revis is dismissed for 6 from 9 at 68 for 4.  "We never hit the wickets"? Well we do!!

Jonny Bairstow is finally in and is off the mark with a single.  But rain comes sweeping in 20 minutes before the lunch interval and they leave the field at 12:15 at 77 for 4 with both Yorkshire bats on 9 each.  Gregory has 2 for 21 and Jake Ball has 1 for 17 with the fourth being the Thomas direct hit.  They may take an early lunch given the time though it may just be a quick shower.

They do in fact taken an early lunch because of the weather break and so should be back about 1pm on Day 1.

After the break Lewis keeps the pressure on as he starts the 26th over.  Craig begins the afternoon at the other end with Wharton specifically havinig no fun with only 10 from 60 balls he has faced. Sure enough, a ball that beats him finally gets a result in the 30th at 85 for 4 when the skipper bowls him with an absolute peach of an inswinging yorker.  10 runs from 61 and few would have been able to keep that one out.  In comes George Hill to look at producing some kind of partnership.

These two push the score past 100 in the 36th Hill takes a single to move him to 14 from 27 while his captain Bairstow has got 17 from the 35 he has seen off.  100 for 5 halfway through the 36th over at 2.8 runs per over. With tha comes more rain but they seem to be looking to play through it.  They do and by the 40th Yorkshire have 117 for 5 as Ball is back on the marks bowling his 8th.  

The third ball sees a snick through by the Yorks skipper but Rew drops the catch even on the third attempt, he takes it above his head, then it falls out and he has another go but finally trying to dive on it, it hits the ground.  Bairstow is definitely dropped on 27 at 117 for 5!!

Jack is on to bowl for the first time at 132 for 5 in the 44th.  The Yorkshire pair's 50 run partnership comes with the second ball at 136 for 5. These two are looking to take this innings out of the contrioil of the Somerset bowlers and that drop of Bairstow is looking ominous unfortunately.#

By the end of the 46th, Yorkshire are looking to pass 150.  They do that in the 47thoff the bowling of Gregory starting his third spell of the day, his 16th of the day.  Bairstow takes the run that moves past that mark to 152 for 5 and himself into the 40s.  Hill has 37 from his 56 and this pair continue to rebuld the innings.  Jack who has gone for 9 in his 2 over so far, goes for 7 more in his 48th and in doing so sees the Yorkshire skipper reach 50 from 74 balls with 9 fours at 159 for 5.

Migael Pretorius returns in the 53rd and Rew gets his mojo back with a very good diving catch to send Hill back to the dressing room for 45 from 80 at 168 for 6.  That brings Dom Bess - Tom Abell's Best Man in October of this year at his marriage - to the crease.  he said he does not want to get out to Jack but that won't be happening as he drives his first ball to Miggy and is caught behind to bring the bowler his second in 2 balls.  Bit ambitious Dom to be honest.  168 for 7 brings Kuldeep to the crease as the hat-trick ball which doesn't come to anything as he takes a single.

The new pair survive to Tea seeing out the 57th over.  They take the break with Bairstow with 59 from 90 balls and Kuldeep up to 7 from his 19 at 182 for 7.  Lewis has 3 from his 18 overs - 3 important spells from the skipper.  2 in an over from Migael give him figures of 2 for 33 from 11 - good tight bowling from the South African.  Jake has taken the other one with the ball with 1 for 39 from his 10.  Jack has bowled 5 for 19 without a victim and Craig has bowled 13 strong overs without the success they deserved to finish with o for 37.  Possibly the most significant stat is that in 2 spells, the 57 overs bowled has resulted in 13 maidens.

The drop by Rew means a bat is still in the middle who can change a game but in the grand scheme of things we would have happily faced him after Tea if we have the home side in this position having chosen to bat and only managing a scoring rate of less than 4 an over.  

No skipper to start the third session.  Jake takes the first with Miggy P at the other end.  They survive into the 60th when Ball has Kuldeep feeling for a ball outside the off and he is caught behind for 11 from 29 at 189 for 8.  Ben Coad is the next man in as a support for the work of Bairstow on who the whole weight of this innings is now on.  By the end of the 62nd they have moved to 199.  The England takes a four off Pretorius to go to 203and it is obvious that he is looking to push the score with the second bounfary of the innings.  However, Ball ties Coad up for a whole over which get Jonny believing that it is only a matter of time.  he therefore goes very BIG off the first ball of the next Pretorius over and bottom edges the ball straight to his opposite number.  He goes for 79 from 110 at 207 for 9.  Maximum bowling points again for the visitors.  Out comes Cliff as the last man.  He was dropped on 27 and 44 but he made the most of his time in the middle.

Cliff hits a four off his second ball  and adds a leg bye before the end of the 65th at 212 for 9.   Cliff flicks the 3rd ball from Ball to Thomas and they are all out for 212.   He goes for 4 and Coad is 0 not out.

Jake finishes with 3 for 49.  Miggy takes 3 for 51 and Lewis already had 3 for 46.  Good bowling performance.  Mixed fielding performance but we have to see this as us on top at this point on Day 1. 

So, 10 minutes later and with 28 overs left in the Day's play, Josh Thomas and Tom Lammonby walk out to start to decrease Yorkshire's 212 run lead.  Coad will take the first over and the only scoring shot is Josh getting off the mark with a single.  Cliff takes the second from the other end and the only person scoring is Thomas.  In fact by the end of the fourth with 11 on the board, Tom Lammonby still does not have a run on the board.