Hodgson unbeaten

Glamorgan 292 and 297

Gloucestershire 158 and 208-3

WITH Northamptonshire applying pressure elsewhere, Glamorgan need to win this game to hold on to second place in the Championship, even though in the run- in at the end of the season the Midlanders' game in hand may be the telling factor. For a time here it looked as if Glamorgan might emulate the leaders, Middlesex, by claiming victory in two days.

Instead, bottom-of-the-table Gloucestershire avoided the follow-on on Friday morning, to the great relief of the hospitable folk running and ringing this pretty Abergavenny ground. And 50 minutes before lunch yesterday they set out to score 432 to win, or bat through 190 overs to save the match. Nothing in the pitch suggested that, with determination, they could not thwart Glamorgan.

As a cloudy afternoon gave way to a sunlit evening, Dean Hodgson put together an unbeaten 107. He suffered a painful blow early on, and could have been caught at square leg when 67 and at slip at 98, but his century, off 229 balls, contained 13 fours and saw him exceed 1,000 for the summer.

Chris Broad, with a disciplined defence and unruffled composure, helped lay the innings' foundation before an edge to Colin Metson rewarded Steve Watkin's perseverance. Then, after a sketchy start Bobby Dawson put on 86 with Hodgson, a pleasant stand between the only two players to score 1,000 runs for Gloucestershire Seconds in a season.

Glamorgan's attack sorely missed Roland Lefebvre, nursing a strained side although able to bat in the morning. If Gloucestershire's resistance continues tomorrow, he might need to take a more active role. But for the moment Glamorgan will want him fit to bowl at Ebbw Vale today.