Hayhurst hits out at `dismal' Derbyshire

Cricket Round-up

Andy Hayhurst laid into his Derbyshire team after a limp performance gave Northamptonshire their third Championship win of the season yesterday.

"Just how do you want me to describe it - dismal?" Hayhurst, Derbyshire's director of cricket, said. "We don't seem to be able to play with any application or passion at the moment. I'm very disappointed and I hope the players are disappointed."

The Northamptonshire rookie spinners Michael Davies and Jason Brown shared eight wickets as Derbyshire managed just 189 on a flat home track.

A draw looked well within their grasp when Dominic Cork and Tim Tweats batted with few alarms for 45 minutes of the final day.

However, the decline began when Cork charged wildly at the first ball from Davies and was stumped by yards for 53.

Tweats was lbw to Kevin Curran for 43 without playing a stroke and Davies and Brown then worked their way through Derbyshire's flimsy batting.

Kim Barnett was caught at slip driving at Davies and after Matthew Cassar was bowled lunging forward to Brown, Karl Krikken was caught off the glove from one that bounced.

At lunch, Derbyshire were 151 for six, only nine runs in front and they subsided quickly after the interval to a series of lurid strokes.

Davies finished with a career-best 5 for 46 in only his fourth Championship game, while Brown picked up 3 for 23 leaving Northamptonshire to score 48 for victory.

They lost Alan Fordham for a duck and, although rain held them up, Richard Montgomerie and captain Rob Bailey wrapped up a 23-point haul in 13.2 overs.