Northeast ton fails to stop Glos

COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION TWO, Bristol:
Gloucestershire 552 beat Kent 264 & 265 by an innings and 23 runs (Glos 22pts, Kent 4pts)

Match scorecard

Sam Northeast hit 23 fours in his unbeaten 128

Sam Northeast hit his maiden first-class century but could not stop Kent being beaten by an innings and 23 runs by Gloucestershire at Nevil Road.

Beginning day three on 439-5, the hosts were bowled out for 552, Steve Adshead making 114 and Jon Lewis 43.

Kent openers Northeast and Rob Key (46) then added 101 for the first wicket.

But when Key was bowled by Steve Kirby (2-54), Division Two champions Kent slumped to 265 all out, Northeast carrying his bat to make 128 not out.

Going in to the game Gloucestershire still had an outside chance of promotion, but the triumph over the Division Two champions became academic when Northants wrapped up victory over Leicestershire earlier on the third day.

The day began in unusual fashion when all-rounder James Franklin retired on his overnight score of 104, having been called up to the New Zealand squad for the ICC Champions Trophy.

This did not deter Adshead, who moved on from his overnight 86 to record his second century of the season before he and Lewis both fell to the bowling of James Tredwell (3-100).

In Franklin's absence, Antony Ireland was named as a replacement, but was last man out when trapped lbw by Matthew Coles for a third-ball duck.

Northeast and Key raised hopes of a fightback but, when the Kent skipper fell, the rest of the side batted as though they had nothing to play for.

Northeast, who made three consecutive hundreds for England Under-19s in July, received scant support as he reached three figures from 133 balls, with 18 fours.

Last-man Amjad Khan's 29 was the third-highest score for Kent, who were deprived of the services of Geraint Jones because of a neck injury.

Lewis, Ireland and Hamish Marshall each picked up two wickets as Gloucestershire wrapped their sixth victory of the season, the hosts being further boosted by the news that Franklin will return as their overseas player in 2010.