MATCH REPORT: Day One v Yorkshire at Headingley
Lancashire made 288 for the loss of fourteen wickets on the first day of the two-day friendly with Yorkshire at a bright and breezy Headingley.
Lancashire lost early wickets after being put in to bat in seamer friendly conditions. The Yorkshire attack of Ben Coad, Jack White and Ben Cliff immediately found a good line and length to trouble all the batters with Kesh Fonseka the first to depart, lbw when trapped on the crease by Hill for 8 followed by George Bell who, having nicely on-driven Jordan Thompson for four, edged Cliff to Fin Bean at third slip for 9.
Harry Singh had survived the early testing conditions to make an increasingly assured 36 that included five fours before he was beaten on the front foot to be lbw to the fourth ball of George Hill’s first over to leave Lancashire 59-3. Tom Aspinwall, whose 5 fours before lunch included a rasping cover drive off Thompson, and Jack Blatherwick negotiated the remaining 45 minutes safely to reach the break on 102-3.
Aspinwall added a further boundary when cutting Coad for four early in the afternoon session but the bowler hit back in the same over by nipping one back between bat and pad to bowl the Red Rose all-rounder for 32 and end the highest partnership of the day at 59. White struck in the following over when Blatherwick lofted a drive to Wharton at cover for 25 with Lancashire 118-5.
Hill then took two wickets in the 43rd over to remove Josh Boyden bowled for 12, and Ollie Sutton caught behind for 1, while Cliff also claim a quick brace having Tom Bailey lbw for 11 and academy player George Harris caught behind for 5.
When Charlie Barnard was lbw to Thompson for 6, Lancashire were effectively 153 all out at the halfway point of the day, but with the teams agreeing that each side would bat for one day, the top of the order returned to bat for a second time, starting with Fonseka.
Having come into bat at number 11, Mitch Stanley hit the first sixes of the day when thrice lofting Dom Bess straight into The Howard Stand before being bowled by left arm spinner Dan Moriarty for 20 on the stroke of tea with Lancashire 162-11.
Fonseka fell lbw sweeping at Moriarty for 12 but Singh and Bell steadily added 49 runs in the evening sunshine in the face of some good, sustained spells from the Yorkshire bowlers until Bell bottom edged a cut off Thompson onto his stumps having made 25 and Singh edged Coad behind for 30.
There was time for both Blatherwick (31 not out, 2 sixes) and Aspinwall (15 not out, 1 six) to hit out adding a further 45 runs before stumps were called at 6pm.
SQUADS
Lancashire: Harry Singh, Kesh Fonseka, George Bell, Tom Hartley, Tom Aspinwall, Jack Blatherwick, Tom Bailey (capt), Josh Boyden, Ollie Sutton, George Harris, Charlie Barnard, Mitchell Stanley, Hassan Mughal.
Yorkshire: Jonny Bairstow (capt), Adam Lyth, James Wharton, Matt Revis, Harry Duke, George Hill, Will Luxton, Dan Moriarty, Jordan Thompson, Dom Bess, Jack White, Fin Bean, Ben Cliff, Ben Coad, Jafer Chohan.