Essex keep Cosker at bay

Glamorgan spinner Dean Cosker took career-best match figures of 11-126 but Essex hung on for a dramatic draw in the LV= County Championship clash at the SWALEC Stadium.

James Foster’s stubborn half-century looked like helping Essex easily save the Division Two contest.

The wicketkeeper-batsman made 73 off 228 balls in nearly four hours, but from 164 for four Essex slumped to 180 for nine in the space of 15.1 overs.

However, last-wicket pair Chris Wright and Danesh Kaneria survived the final 13 balls of the day to deny Glamorgan victory.

Essex had been left 320 to win from a minimum of 88 overs but, after being reduced to 38 for three on a turning wicket, Foster, Mark Pettini and Alastair Cook steadied the ship until the final dramatic collapse.

Glamorgan, for whom Cosker took 5-35 from 36 overs in the second innings, picked up 10 points to Essex's nine.

Dean Cosker returned remarkable figures of 36-19-35-5 but could not break Essex's resistance in Cardiff

At the start of the final day Glamorgan added a further 17 runs to their overnight total of 279 for nine.

Jamie Dalrymple, 89 not out at the start of play, was stranded on 98 after Garnett Kruger was caught behind off Graham Napier.

Not only was Dalrymple two short of his fourth century of the summer, but he was left one run shy of 1,000 first-class runs for the summer.

Essex were forced to open with John Maunders and Tom Westley as Cook was relegated down the order because he was off the field with food poisoning on the third day.

It was certainly Glamorgan's morning as they took three quick Essex wickets after off-spinner Robert Croft and slow left-armer Cosker opened the bowling.

Cosker broke through in only his third over by bowling Westley, before Dalrymple struck with his fifth delivery to have Maunders caught at slip as Essex were reduced to 18 for two.

A third wicket soon followed when Mark Cosgrove took a fine one-handed catch diving to his right at leg slip to remove Matt Walker.

There followed a dogged fourth-wicket stand of 68 in 31 overs between Foster and Pettini spanning 31 overs, broken only when the latter gave a bat-pad catch to Gareth Rees at short-leg.

Adam Shanty sparked the sudden collapse by having Cook, who batted almost an hour and a half for his 17, taken at short-leg.

Foster went lbw to Croft, Napier was caught at silly point to give Cosker his 10th wicket of the match, Tim Phillips was bowled by Croft and Cosker broke through David Masters' defence.

Croft thought he had won the game from the penultimate ball when there was a claim of a catch at short-leg against Wright, but the last-wicket pair survived.

The result confirms that Kent are promoted back to Division One. They can still be overhauled as champions by Northamptonshire, who are 36 points back.