Symonds batters fading Yorkshire without let-up

Yorkshire 417 Lancashire 537 (Match abandoned at 73 mins)

Symonds towered over this third day's play. He entered when Mark Chilton fell without addition to his overnight 130, guarded his end while Lancashire lost another three wickets to Deon Kruis, who found a little more lift yesterday, and Yorkshire must have been delighted to have restrained him to 50 off 33 overs to lunch.

Without Chris Silverwood, nursing a hamstring, Yorkshire covered the gap successfully, thanks mostly to Kruis and at one point had Lancashire at 371 for 7; they also deprived Lancshire of an extra batting point when Kruis, in a last gasp, managed a maiden over to the veteran wicketkeeper Warren Hegg with three runs wanted.

But as the second new ball aged and the three specialist bowlers were sinking to their knees, Symonds opened up a merciless pounding of a fading attack.

Hegg, drawing confidence from his partner, found his timing and the pair added 137 in 26 overs, overturning the eighth-wicket Roses record from 1986 and by tea, with Hegg swinging merrily, Lancashire had passed their best ever Roses score on this ground, 509, in 1926. As these records tumble it should be remembered that they were set in three-day cricket.

Symonds's departure, to a waft to cover that looked like an afterthought, left Hegg to lead another thrashing about by the tail. He has done it to Yorkshire several times before and, if this should be his last Roses match, made sure he would be remembered.

Yorkshire were left 25 overs to the close, facing a 120-run deficit and their hopes of avoiding defeat might depend upon the approaching rain front.

The pitch hints at assistance to spin but the luckless Richard Dawson could find no confirmation. Both clubs have an eye on tomorrow's Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy semi-finals, with Yorkshire facing a long coach drive to Southampton to face a rested Hampshire.

They are still hoping that their Australian all-rounder Ian Harvey will have recovered from a broken thumb.