Glamorgan ended day two of their encounter with Nottinghamshire with a lead of 52 with two wickets in hand. Fifties from the bats of David Lloyd, Sam Northeast and Timm van der Gugten ensure the visitors enjoyed the better of the days play.
There was a time in Northeast’s career when big things looked destined. A solid leader of Kent and a batter people would rely on to score runs, it seemed only a matter of time before he would play for England. At 32-years-old, those days seem like they have slid by, and a move to Glamorgan in the winter was telling. However, with 25 hundreds to his name, Northeast is still a valuable player in your middle-order.
It appeared as if Northeast had found that hunger to be the go-to man. Glamorgan could have been in a spot of bother when Marnus Labuschagne shouldered arms to a Brett Hutton delivery than was always destined for the stumps and one of the best batters in the world was lbw for three.
Lloyd was batting well at the other end, fortunate to be still there after being caught at second slip the previous evening only to be reprieved by a no-ball.
Batting for the rest of the morning session looked relatively easy as Notts rotated their attack to no avail.
Lloyd and Northeast added 117 for the third wicket. Glamorgan were the dominant force, and the visitors’ first innings lead was on the cards.
Notts have a doggedness about them that had been missing in their previous Division Two campaign, and just as they did against Sussex last week, they kept plugging away. Brett Hutton eventually made the breakthrough, Lloyd edging to slip and Duckett taking the catch. The opener departed for 76.
Kiran Carlson joined Northeast and started to build a steady partnership before Carlson edged behind for 22, giving Joey Evison his first wicket of the game.
Evison, who scored his maiden first-class century last week, was soon in the wickets again, Chris Cooke the man to go, caught behind by Tom Moores without scoring.
Glamorgan wickets were starting to fall at regular intervals. Northeast was running out of partners as he approached what should have been his first century for his new club. So when Michael Neser was bowled for 20 to give Evison his third wicket of the day, Glamorgan might have been forgiven for thinking a first-innings lead was beyond them.
When Dane Paterson bowled Northeast for 85, that looked even further off but James Weighell and van der Gugten ensured the visiting supporters had something to cheer as the day’s play entered the final hour. Their partnership of 106 secured a first-innings lead.
The little comfort that the home side will draw from the ninth-wicket partnership was that there was nothing wrong with the pitch, and batting on day three should still be relatively easy.
Liam Patterson-White broke the resolve of Weighell, who edged behind for 45. Van der Gugten finished unbeaten on 56 and Glamorgan ended the day 52 runs in front to set up an exciting day three.
