While Glamorgan Dragons were outwitting Leicestershire Foxes in our featured match, it was appropriate that Worcestershire Royals were crowning the Golden Jubilee with an emphatic win over Yorkshire Phoenix at Headingley. Kabir Ali continued a remarkable run of success, with five for 36 as Phoenix crumbled to 128 all out. Allan Donald marked his first appearance for the Royals with two wickets. Ben Smith then made an unbeaten 38 and Anurag Singh 33 as the Royals coasted home with more than seven overs to spare.

Elsewhere in Division One, Neil Carter (five for 31) and Shaun Pollock (three for 10) flattened Durham Dynamos for just 72. It took Warwickshire Bears just 11 overs and one ball to overhaul that, with Carter and Pollock the batsmen to the fore.

At Tunbridge Wells, Kent Spitfires flew comfortably over Notts Outlaws with a five-wicket win. James Golding (three for 25) was the Spitfires' main gunner as the Outlaws were shot down for 191, and an opening partnership of 82 between Robert Key (68*) and Matthew Fleming (64 off just 44 balls) provided rocket fuel for the Spitfires' reply.

In Division Two, Hampshire Hawks won a tense encounter with Middlesex Crusaders at Lord's. The South African wicket-keeper Nic Pothas was the Hawks' top scorer with an unbeaten 39 as they reached 183 for eight. The Crusaders were given a solid start by Andy Strauss (35) and Sven Koenig (24), but uniformly tight bowling from the Hawks left the Crusaders just three runs short of victory.

There was another tight finish at Northampton, where the Steelbacks overcame Surrey Lions by just five runs. Mal Loye (86) and Mike Hussey (69) laid the foundations for the Steelbacks' win, setting up their eventual total of 229. Although Ally Brown roared to 55 off just 47 balls, there was always a little too much for the Lions to do, and Ricky Anderson (three for 30) helped to draw their teeth.

Sussex Sharks endured no such impediment at Horsham, as the high-flying Essex Eagles fell to earth with a thud. After a waterlogged start, the Sharks were re-floated by wicket-keeper Matthew Prior, who made 73 from just 67 balls. An unbeaten 41 from Kevin Innes pushed the total to 240. A double strike from James Kirtley then reduced the Eagles to four for two, and despite contributions from Graham Napier (50) Andy Flower (49) and Ronnie Irani (51), the Eagles ultimately subsided to 208 all out.

In the other Division Two match, played under floodlights at Old Trafford, Gloucestershire Gladiators won the toss and batted first. Despite the fact that Lancashire Lightening's John Wood took five for 49, the men from Bristol managed to total an impressive 269 for eight in their 45 overs. There were useful contributions all down the order, but top-scorer was the evergreen Kim Barnett with 66. In reply, several batsmen from the home county got a start, but they were undone by some typically persistent and miserly bowling from the Gladiators' attack and they were shot out at regular intervals. In the end, Lightening could not even survive for the full over allocation and were bowled out for 190 to lose by 79 runs.

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