A SUPERBLY paced innings of 79 in 67 balls from Tony Penberthy gave Northamptonshire their first victory of the season in an otherwise humdrum match.

Amid a flurry of sixes, swings and scurried singles, the visitors won by seven wickets with four balls to spare. Meanwhile, Somerset slowly subsided.

Penberthy can take credit for an intelligently paced pursuit. After a slow start, Kevin Curran lent frisky support to ensure the opportunity was not missed. Only Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Caddick made Northamptonshire work hard for their runs, Caddick's six-over spell from the Crooked Stand end costing 16 runs. Otherwise, the batsmen moved along without apparent difficulty on another superb Taunton pitch.

Northamptonshire had not bowled or fielded well enough to take complete satisfaction from their win, and Russell Warren had a stinker behind the sticks. Only Franklin Rose kept a tight enough length, and he also fielded splendidly.

Somerset batted in lively fashion, Piran Holloway ferreting 77 in 99 balls. Everyone else played a range of ambitious strokes before dying in the cause.