COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION ONE, Old Trafford:
CLOSE OF PLAY, DAY TWO: Worcestershire 172 and 236, Lancashire 145 and 40-0 (Lancs 3pts, Worcs 3pts)
10-13 July 2009 (Play starts 1100 BST)

After a slow start to the summer Moore has now hit back-to-back centuries

Lancashire need 224 to win with all 10 second innings wickets standing despite Worcestershire's Stephen Moore hitting a first Championship ton of the summer.

The 28-year-old England Lions opener, who made a hundred against Australia last week, thrashed 18 boundaries in his 107 off 152 balls.

But, after bowling out the home side for 145, Worcestershire then feebly collapsed from 133-2 to 236 all out.

And, after Lancs reached 40-0 by the close, the game is now evenly poised.

A whopping 18 wickets had fallen on the first day on Friday, courtesy of swing, pace and a bouncy track.

But the swing seemed to die down on day two, left-arm spinner Gary Keedy shaking off a finger injury to prove the pick of the home bowlers with 4-60, complementing three more for Kyle Hogg, who claimed career-best match figures of 6-79.

Worcestershire pace bowler Matt Mason had earlier completed his best bowling figures in three years, 7-39, after picking up the two remaining Lancashire wickets.

He got Oliver Newby and skipper Glen Chapple for 44, to earn a valuable first-innings lead of 27. And, having claimed his first wicket in his 10th over on day one and his seventh at the end of his 17th, that gave him a stunning wicket-to-wicket spell of 7-20 from eight overs.

But, having at one stage been 82-8, to eke out 62 runs for the last two wickets may yet prove very important runs for Lancashire.

Sajid Mahmood (2-42 from 16) was the early pick of Lancashire's bowlers, claiming the wicket of Daryl Mitchell before lunch and roughing up the likes of Moore, Vikram Solanki and Ben Smith.

Then Moore and Smith added 79 for the third wicket to dampen home enthusiasm until Keedy took two wickets in two overs, Smith (28) and Moeen Ali.

That sparked Lancashire into life, even more so when Steven Davies was brilliantly run out by Steven Croft from cover before Moore was bowled by Hogg, who had earlier trapped Solanki lbw before lunch.

The wicket of Moore was the first of two in four balls for Hogg as he had Gareth Batty caught behind, as the visitors reached tea on 20-7.

Mahmood then claimed his second wicket of the innings when Ashley Noffke edged to VVS Laxman at second slip, before Keedy polished off the tail.

Lancashire paceman Kyle Hogg told BBC Lancashire:

"Stephen Moore played very well. He rode his luck a bit early on but he looked the best batter out there by a mile.

"We stuck in there, though, and the wickets came in a clump.

"Gary Keedy was struggling with his finger and we weren't sure whether he was going to bowl or not.

"But coming on to get rid of Ben Smith was a massive wicket and we ground our way through.

"We tend to bowl well together me and Keeds."

Worcestershire opener Stephen Moore told BBC Lancashire:

"I did the hard work in the first innings and then missed a straight one.

"And I was determined not to do it again to give ourselves something to bowl at.

"We were in a great position to put the game away and that's something we have to work on.

"But I'd still say the advantage is with us.

"Trying to get in on that wicket is difficult and we've got another crack with the new cherry in the morning."

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