Cricket: Gloucestershire's bounty

Gloucestershire 230-8 Somerset 180 Gloucs win by 50 runs

WHAT A difference a week and 30 minutes makes. Normally the Natwest Trophy takes place in early September at 10.30am, when the team winning the toss fields first and wins the match. Somerset managed the former but summarily failed to accomplish the latter, as their west country neighbours and rivals Gloucestershire romped home to win their second one-day trophy of the season by 50 runs.

After 22 years without a trophy, it has been a bountiful season for Gloucestershire, bottom of the Championship and looking destined for division two next season. As most international sides have come to realise, good one-day cricketers are not necessarily able to excel at the longer game and vice versa. However, the shorter game is blamed for most of the perceived shortcomings in the modern player without ever being given credit for the plusses, like the increased standards in fielding.

Reduced from 60 overs-a-side to 50, the last Natwest final of the century favoured the better all-round team. As Mark Alleyne's side showed a month ago in the B&H Super Cup final, they are an efficient one-day outfit who concentrate on the basics; which are bowling straight, fielding like tigers and building a solid start with the bat, the last mainly due to Tim Hancock's 74.

It is a simple formula, but when played well, cricket is a simple game. Stick to it and the opposition have to produce something special to upset you. Somerset didn't, and even with cider on tap, their normally vocal supporters went quiet some time before Ian Harvey took the final wicket.

Needing 231 to win, Somerset lost Peter Bowler in the third over of the innings driving loosely at Harvey. To lose one opener early in a run chase is unfortunate, to lose two, as they did when their Australian skipper Jamie Cox fell lbw in the next over, seriously damages your chances of winning.

Cox has brought an edge to Somerset's cricket this season and he will look back on his decision to give Gloucestershire first use of a slowing wicket with regret. In fact once he'd gone, Somerset never recovered sufficiently to threaten their opponents and only a 82-run stand between Rob Turner and Keith Parsons for the sixth wicket sweetened the margin of defeat, which by the standards of one-day cricket was still vast.

Turner, the wicketkeeper, and one widely tipped to tour in some capacity with England this winter, scored 51 from 71 balls. But no sooner had Turner acknowledged the applause for his half-century he was out, smartly caught by Jack Russell.

The dismissal was one of four performed by Russell, who despite looking like an extra from Easy Rider, also won the man of the match award.

Standing up to all his bowlers, the best of the bunch was the stumping of Parsons who'd barely dragged his toe over the line before finding the bails had been removed. Naturally the third umpire had to confirm it but both batsman and keeper knew it would not contradict the feelings in their water.

Put into bat, Gloucestershire began well, putting on 125 for the first wicket through Hancock and Kim Barnett, their 39-year old new boy.

Apart from Andy Caddick, who bowled without luck, the pair were largely untroubled proceeding at a comfortable five runs an over for the first 20 of the innings.

Caddick has had a tough season in terms of workload and for someone labelled as a shirker, he has consistently put in the hard yard. Too bad then that he chose yesterday to have a slightly off-day with the new ball from the Pavilion End.

With the pitch beige in colour and sluggish, Somerset obviously bowled first in the hope that Caddick would make early inroads. He didn't, though later from the Nursery End, when the damage had been done, he looked every bit the bowler who has taken 20 wickets for England this summer.

Given the lack of penetration, it was no surprise that the first wicket fell to a run out and Barnett was well short of his ground when Parsons's underarm throw hit the jackpot.

Graham Rose, playing in place of Steffan Jones, then struck twice to remove Rob Cunliffe and Alleyne. When Hancock followed, lbw to Paul Jarvis in the next over, Gloucstershire were 161-4 and ripe to be pegged back.

They weren't and despite a constant stream of wickets, five of them to Jarvis, the rest of the order, ably marshalled by Russell, kept the run- rate ticking along to end up 230-8. On a day that saw a nervy Somerset below their best, it was comfortable enough.

In Colombo, Sanath Jayasuriya hit an exuberant 71 off 53 balls to secure Sri Lanka's place in the finals of the Aiwa Cup triangular tournament despite losing to India. The Sri Lankan skipper shared a century opening stand with Marvan Atapattu to steer his team to their target of 232 runs enough to qualify for tomorrow's final against Australia.

LORD'S SCOREBOARD

Somerset won toss

Gloucestershire Innings

K J Barnett run out (Parsons) 49

111 mins, 66 balls, 2 fours

T H C Hancock lbw b Jarvis 74

160 mins, 119 balls, 8 fours

R J Cunliffe c Turner b Rose 3

8 mins, 8 balls

*M W Alleyne b Rose 14

31 mins, 30 balls

R C Russell not out 31

63 mins, 37 balls, 1 four

M G N Windows lbw b Jarvis 12

17 mins, 13 balls, 2 fours

I J Harvey c Holloway b Jarvis 7

11 mins, 9 balls, 1 four

J N Snape st Turner b Jarvis 11

13 mins, 14 balls

M C J Ball c Burns b Jarvis 5

8 mins, 6 balls

M J Cawdron not out 0

2 mins, 0 balls

Extras (lb10,w10,nb4) 24

Total (8 wkts, 216min, 50 overs) 230

Fall: 1-125 (Barnett), 2-129 (Cunliffe), 3-161 (Alleyne), 4-161 (Hancock), 5-180 (Windows), 6-193 (Harvey), 7-210 (Snape), 8-224 (Ball).

Did not bat: A M Smith.

Bowling: Caddick 10-1-29-0; Rose 10-3-38-2; Jarvis 10-1-55-5; Kerr 10- 0-43-0; Parsons 10-0-55-0.

Somerset Innings

P D Bowler c Russell b Harvey 1

10 mins, 14 balls

*J Cox lbw b Smith 3

15 mins, 4 balls

P C L Holloway c Ball b Smith 13

36 mins, 25 balls, 1 four

M Burns c Ball b Alleyne 26

47 mins, 39 balls, 3 fours

M E Trescothick c Russell b Alleyne 5

22 mins, 14 balls, 1 four

K A Parsons st Russell b Smith 42

100 mins, 58 balls, 3 fours

+R J Turner c Russell b Alleyne 51

68 mins, 71 balls, 3 fours

G D Rose c Windows b Harvey 24

45 mins, 34 balls, 1 four

J I D Kerr run out (Alleyne) 2

8 mins, 6 balls

A R Caddick b Harvey 1

3 mins, 2 balls

P W Jarvis not out 3

7 mins, 4 balls

Extras (lb4,w5) 9

Total (185 min, 45.1 overs) 180

Fall: 1-5 (Bowler), 2-9 (Cox), 3-37 (Holloway), 4-51 (Burns), 5-52 (Trescothick), 6-134 (Turner), 7-166 (Parsons), 8-171 (Kerr), 9-174 (Caddick), 10-180 (Rose).

Bowling: Harvey 7.1-0-23-3; Smith 9-0-25-3; Alleyne 10-0-37-3; Cawdron 8-0-38-0; Ball 7-0-33-0; Snape 4-0-20-0.

Man of the match: R C Russell

Umpires: N T Plews and D R Shepherd

Compiled by Jo King