By Charles Randall at Old Trafford
First day of four: Hants (74-5) trail Lancs (185) by 111 runs
LANCASHIRE were bowled out for their lowest score of the season yesterday at a time when they needed championship bonus points most, and their chances of outflanking the two title- contending counties at the Oval dipped accordingly.
Michael Atherton, with 45, showed that runs could be garnered from a seaming pitch but his colleagues struggled against a much-improved Hampshire attack.
The fall of 15 wickets on the day was the result of warehouse-quality light and residual moisture in a slowish pitch which was exploited by the seam bowlers.
The England and Wales Cricket Board took the unusual precaution of sending an observer to monitor the pitch for the day, but it would not have been in Lancashire's interests to prepare a low-quality strip.
Hampshire's bowlers firmly scotched any notion that the Old Trafford Lodge, the 72-bedroom hotel being constructed inside the ground near the Warwick Road entrance, marked the fruition of some sort of benevolent freemasonry.
Even if Lancashire were to pick up all four bowling points as expected, the mathematics at tea-time after Hampshire had claimed their 10th catch of the innings pointed increasingly to a Leicestershire or Surrey title.
Snicks were all well held, including three in the slips by Will Kendall, and Lancashire did well to reach 185. Their innings was like one of those old Naafi sandwiches - not much in the middle and the fact that Hampshire struggled with the bat in the evening was little consolation for Wasim Akram and his team.
Lancashire's victory potential was reduced to 20 points, leaving Leicestershire needing a draw worth 10 points without the pressure of acquiring maximum bonuses. Yesterday's events suggested Lancashire should finish runners-up to round off a creditable season, which made Dav Whatmore's decision to sign on as coach for another two years a formality.
Hampshire's medium-pace seam bowlers, notably Alex Morris, put the clamp on after the prolific John Crawley, Lancashire's main hope, had perished in the 14th over.
Crawley pulled too early at Dimitri Mascarenhas's opening delivery, tried to adjust and top-edged high to square leg where wicketkeeper Adrian Aymes, after sprinting 25 yards, made a difficult catch look simple.
Atherton had to be at his best for 2.5 hours as seam and swing kept the slips in a constant state of anticipation. He might have been run out if Giles White's football kick had hit the stumps, but otherwise he batted without too many scares, as though runs were bolted to the floor.
At one stage Atherton and Graham Lloyd, between them, faced 40 successive deliveries without a run before a flurry of slip catches left Lancashire relying on belligerent recovery efforts from Ian Austin and Gary Yates.
Kendall caught Lloyd for a 19-ball duck and then flung himself to his right at third slip to extend Andrew Flintoff's sequence of failures. Atherton, defending on the back foot, edged a kicking ball to first slip.
Hampshire's reply lacked Atherton's skill and resolve, apart from Will Kendall, as Wasim whipped in his left-armers at a fast pace. Kendall, after the hard work, was yorked by Austin with two overs remaining.
Day 2: Crawley's mammoth effort in vain
By Charles Randall at Old Trafford
Second day of four: Lancashire (185 & 296-1) lead Hampshire (172) by 309 runs
JOHN CRAWLEY'S masterly innings of 211 at Old Trafford yesterday guaranteed control for Lancashire in what had been a tight game, and the only pity was that such a torrent of runs could not have been achieved in the first innings when four bonus points were at stake.
Hampshire's seam-bowling the previous day had been quite classy, but Lancashire's wasted points could have proved absolutely crucial to their championship aspirations. Leicestershire would have been reminded that more than a draw might be necessary at the Oval.
Evening glare at the Stretford End washed over the ground and halted play two overs early, with Hampshire perspiring and defeated in the field.
Crawley had waded into a depleted bowling attack with a mixture of ferocity and finesse that was a joy to watch, and he became the first batsman to hit seven championship hundreds for Lancashire in a season for 51 years. And he will still be there this morning.
Hampshire were effectively two bowlers short, their two best at that, when Alex Morris (groin) and Nixon McLean (ankle) failed to recover from injuries sustained the previous day.
Crawley, nevertheless, was magnificent. He galloped to his hundred in only 131 balls, his double hundred in 236, and there must have been a few spectators who remembered 1947 when Cyril Washbrook, with seven centuries, and Winston Plaice, who hit nine, enjoyed a vintage summer as opening partners.
Crawley struck 23 fours and seven sixes, often turning his back on the ball in flight and scuffing the crease nonchalantly with his toe cap as the ball clattered against the hoardings or bounced among the seats in the roped-off Hornby Stand.
Once, though, he did look concerned when he scooped under a drive at Shaun Udal's off-spin and watched the ball skim long-on's fingertips for six. Otherwise his certainty was intimidating.
For brash batting, only Alec Stewart ranks with Crawley, who has it in him to be a sensation in the forthcoming Ashes series. Crawley batted like an Australian yesterday, which is not intended to discredit the contributions by Michael Atherton and Neil Fairbrother.
Easily the country's heaviest run-scorer this summer, he treated Hampshire with contempt, especially when Udal and Rajesh Maru tried to exploit a spinning pitch, and Giles White's occasional leg-breaks fared no better.
Day 3: Lancashire take title blow in their characteristic stride
By Peter Roebuck at Old Trafford
Lancashire 185 & 449-4 v Hampshire 195
AT 11.45am the bad news arrived. Championship rivals Leicestershire had taken a seventh Surrey wicket, Lancashire could not win the title. Only the collecting of points remained, and the burying of a cheerful opponent whose resources had been severely stretched, tasks the hosts set about with sustained energy.
Lancashire were left to regret missed batting points and cautious play in Colwyn Bay, and to acknowledge the skill and tenacity of the champions-elect. Falling short must have been a particular blow to Wasim Akram, in his last season as captain though he may well return soon in some other capacity. Nevertheless, it has been a splendid season for Lancashire, and Dav Whatmore, their coach, has duly signed to stay until 2000.
Not wanting to finish feebly, Lancashire played a forcing game. Already, John Crawley's innings had been described as ``awesome'' by an opponent. Resuming on 211, Crawley contributed some rousing and sweetly-timed strokes, including a lofted drive into the fifth row of seats beside the sight-screen, and pulls that made redundant a far-flung field.
He will be taking charge at Old Trafford next year. Responsibility has drawn him from his cave. Between times he has a part to play Down Under, especially if Shane Warne's shoulder recovers, although latest reports indicate that the Australian spinner may not play this winter.
Eventually, Crawley's innings ended, another carefree stroke bringing about his downfall. Lancashire continued to dominate an attack lacking its two leading practitioners and relying upon Raj Maru, in his last county appearance. Neil Fairbrother glanced and glided and occasionally clouted his way towards a hundred, his third of the season, against opponents unable to stop him stealing singles. Meanwhile, Graeme Lloyd thumped away until he was held at long-on where Dimitri Mascarenhas had a busy time trying to protect a craftily shortened boundary.
Alas, Andrew Flintoff failed again, caught and bowled as he drove timidly to end a season that began brightly and ended gloomily. His talent, though, cannot be missed.
Lancashire declared at lunchtime and set about putting a dry pitch to use. Wasim sent down some electric charges. At least he is playing. Eleven of the overseas cricketers are missing. No wonder money is being spent upon top English players like Mal Loye, who is expected to join another Midlands county. Of course, the Australians are at the Commonwealth Games, to which England did not send a team.
Hampshire did not intend to go down without a fight. After Peter Martin had taken an early wicket, Will Kendall and Derek Kenway joined forces in a defiant partnership. Kendall was neat and capable but his partner started nervously. At 26, Kenway was dropped at gully whereupon he began to bat confidently. It took Wasim's return to break the partnership, Kendall falling to a sizzling yorker. Next, Kenway fell unluckily, as Lancashire opened the breach.
More day 3:
Lancashire (185 & 449-4 dec) bt Hampshire (172 & 301) by 161 runs
JOHN CRAWLEY was confirmed as Lancashire's new captain at Old Trafford yesterday after they had secured the runners-up slot in the championship, their highest placing since 1987.
Lancashire finished the season in style with their fifth consecutive victory, and even a well-beaten Hampshire could reflect on a season improved beyond their expectations, rising from 14th to sixth.
Crawley, who celebrates his 27th birthday today, deserves the honour, though his appointment seems a little hollow because, as a potential pillar of the England team, he is unlikely to be available to Lancashire for at least half the season next year. No vice-captain has yet been appointed.
Crawley has benefited from a change of approach to batting after his low-key Caribbean tour with England, opting, he said, for ``a bit more determination and a bit more aggression. I made the mistake during the winter in the West Indies of being too negative and I paid the price.''
The result has been spectacular, and he ends the season with 1,851 runs and the highest aggregate in the country by a long way, averaging more than 74. The 239 off 264 balls he completed against Hampshire on Saturday, including eight sixes, was his seventh century for Lancashire, on top of one for England - a gush of hundreds unmatched by an Old Trafford batsman since the days of Cyril Washbrook and Winston Place in 1947.
Robin Smith, in his first season as Hampshire's captain, has taken the side to their best championship finish for eight years, plus a top-half placing in the AXA League and a NatWest Trophy semi-final.
Hampshire could take satisfaction for ruining Lancashire's title chance on the first day. Yesterday the overnight pair of Shaun Udal and Rajesh Maru enjoyed themselves, Maru driving a straight six off Gary Yates to mark his farewell first-class game.
It was more with relief than unbridled joy that Dav Whatmore greeted Lancashire's vintage summer after last year, when the Australian admitted he was struggling to come to terms with the packed English county season.
Added to this summer's AXA League and NatWest Trophy successes, the second place put Lancashire so close to a treble that Whatmore, 44, could justifiably occupy a pedestal with Bob Woolmer, Warwickshire's coach in their treble year of 1994. Woolmer can take credit for South Africa's Commonwealth gold medal this weekend, but he has yet to emulate Whatmore's World Cup achievement with Sri Lanka.
Yet Whatmore was close to despair last year when he experienced what he described as the worst moment of his life. Lancashire had lost to Somerset in less than two days' playing time at Taunton during a mediocre season, and in the hotel an embarrassed Whatmore had to mix with supporters who had booked accommodation with no cricket to watch.