LV COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION ONE, Scarborough:
CLOSE OF PLAY, DAY TWO: Yorkshire 516 Essex 159-5
Yorkshire 6pts Essex 3pts
Match scorecard

Yorkshire captain Gale hit 18 fours and a six in his 135

Yorkshire recorded their highest score in a home match against Essex, 516, before astute bowling changes saw the visitors reduced to 150-5.

Yorkshire captain Andrew Gale scored a faultless 135, and supporting half-centuries came from Jonny Bairstow and Richard Pyrah.

England's Alastair Cook then fell lbw to Simon Patterson for 7 as Essex stuttered to 32-3.

Essex still need a further 208 to avoid the follow-on.

Yorkshire resumed with Anthony McGrath on 112 and Gale on 89, but McGrath failed to add to his second consecutive century before being lbw to David Masters.

Gale's century came off 168 balls with 14 fours and a six and he and Bairstow added 76 in 17 overs for the fifth wicket before being neatly stumped by Foster off left-arm spinner Tim Phillips.

Bairstow went on to a well constructed 62 off 112 balls with 11 fours, and Pyrah, who was last out, hit 61 from just 73 deliveries with six fours and a six.

Essex openers Billy Godleman and Alastair Cook appeared in little difficulty against erratic new ball bowling from West Indian Tino Best and Oliver Hannon-Dalby.

But a double bowling change by Gale paid immediate dividends as Cook was lbw to Steven Patterson's second ball and Godleman suffered a similar fate off the final ball of leg-spinner Adil Rashid's first over.

Best returned straight after the interval and John Maunders slashed his second ball to Pyrah at backward point. Jaik Mickleburgh and Mark Pettini dug in, but Gale called up Hannon-Dalby again and Mickleburgh became the third lbw victim of the innings.

A stand of 61 between Pettini and James Foster was brought to an end in dramatic fashion by Best who plucked Pettini's off-stump out of the ground.

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