England's selectors received an early-season scare when England's centrally contracted paceman Matthew Hoggard limped out of Yorkshire's CricInfo Championship clash with Kent after sending down just 12.1 overs on the lush St Lawrence outfield.

England's winter tourist went off for treatment just seven balls into the mid-session complaining of a back strain – the legacy of a slip in the field during the morning session – and failed to emerge thereafter.

Yet strangely, Hoggard's absence only served to inspire team-mate Chris Silverwood who bagged four for 23 after lunch and five for 45 in all to dismiss Kent for just 142 inside 71 overs.

Fresh from scoring three centuries in an impressive total of 456 in their drawn game with Surrey, Kent must have expected to start their home campaign on a high. There was no sign of the collapse to follow as they went in to lunch on 71 for two, having lost Rob Key to a contentious catch at the wicket and Ed Smith leg before. Yet the hosts conspired to lose their last eight wickets for just 71 runs in the face of accurate, but hardly hostile bowling from Silverwood and Gary Fellows.

Matthew Walker and James Hockley were guilty of giving away their wickets to loose shots against Michael Vaughan and Fellows respectively, while Mark Ealham appeared to lose the ball in fading light and his middle stump went as a result.

Bowling down the Nackington Road slope Silverwood proved too wily for home skipper Matthew Fleming and Min Patel, having both caught at third slip, and completed his five-wicket tally by having Martin Saggers caught behind.

Yorkshire openers Simon Widdup and Vaughan had reached 12 without loss or alarm when rain halted play for the day just before 5pm.

© CricInfo