LANCASHIRE stayed up among the pack leaders in the AXA League after making light work of a target of 164 and eventually sailed home by six wickets with 11.5 overs in hand.
They are now nicely primed, too, to assume the leadership on Wednesday night in a floodlit jamboree here when a new incarnation, Lancashire Lightning, take on the Surrey Lions, currently lying at the foot of the table.
This was a disciplined all-round team effort capped by 41 from John Crawley who is in a rich vein of form at all levels of the game, and emphasised by Graham Lloyd square-cutting Mushtaq Ahmed for the winning runs.
Somerset have been known to deploy two slips and more in these matches but there was no such luxury yesterday defending a moderate total, and Mushtaq was strangely held back until the halfway stage when Lancashire were almost home and dry on 104 for one.
Lancashire were never in danger once Andy Flintoff, more Howitzer launcher than pinch-hitter, set the tone in fading light, mowing Graham Rose beyond long leg for six and driving another over long on before treating Andy Caddick with similar disrespect in a quickfire 39. Michael Burns finally clung on low at long on to the great delight of Steffan Jones, the former Welsh under-21 rugby representative. Michael Atherton's 37 was a far more sedate affair, ended abruptly, and to his obvious displeasure, when wicketkeeper Robert Turner held him off Mushtaq's first ball.
Somerset's total, having lost the toss, always seemed inadequate given the hosts' batting line-up, though they enjoyed a reasonable start, advancing to 94 for three in the 22nd over in the face of inventive captaincy from Wasim Akram, who rang the changes constantly.
Piran Holloway rode his luck at the outset, but was eventually caught by Wasim at backward point for 34 off one that stopped from the off-spinner, Gary Yates.
The innings struggled for momentum thereafter, though Simon Ecclestone hung around for 29 before Peter Martin clutched a fine catch tumbling backwards at long on. Yates varied his slide intelligently and finished with three for 35 despite being drilled for sixes in his final two overs by Caddick.
Richard Green (three for 37) filled in admirably for Glen Chapple, whose back spasm needed rest prior to this morning's push for victory in the championship.