Hampshire are dismissed for 357 at Cardiff

Glamorgan made one change to their line-up from the side which defeated Derbyshire at their Cardiff headquarters a fortnight ago with Aneurin Donald replacing Gareth Rees, and at 17 years and 277 days old, he joins the likes of Jim Pressdee, Alan Lewis Jones, Allan Watkins, Tony Lewis, Darren Thomas, Mark Wallace, Hugh Morris and David Harrison who all made their Championship debuts for Glamorgan before their 18^th birthday.


Hampshire opted to bat after winning the toss and Will Smith began in assertive vein by clipping Michael Hogan to mid-wicket for four, although to the next ball, Hogan found the edge as a more involuntary stroke saw the opener secure a second four to third man. Jim Allenby then replaced Graham Wagg at the River End and with his second delivery he also found the outside edge of Smith's bat as he propped forward to the all-rounder with Mark Wallace completing the regulation catch.


Three balls later 17/1 became 17/2 as Liam Dawson skewed a defensive stroke to a rising ball from Allenby with Dean Cosker taking the catch as the ball lobbed from the shoulder of the bat to the gully as the all-rounder (who along with Kent's Darren Stevens is one of only two county players in the past three seasons to have over 2,000 runs and 100 wickets to his name in Championship cricket) began his day's work with a double-wicket maiden.


James Vince began with a brace of fours against Allenby to fine-leg, backward point and third man before Wagg replaced Hogan at the Cathedral Road End and beat the outside edge until Vince biffed him in the air over the head of mid-off before pulling a short ball to the ropes at square-leg. He then recorded his sixth and seventh fours as he twice drilled Allenby through mid-off, but Wagg then saw Glamorgan to their first bowling point as Adams edged the left-armer and Wallace took a fine diving catch in front of the slip cordon.


Shortly afterwards, 50/3 became 53/5 as firstly Tom Alsop edged another rising delivery from Allenby into Cosker's grateful hands in the gully before Adam Wheater shouldered arms to the next delivery and departed l.b.w. Sean Ervine then came in and cover drove Wagg for four, before hoisting Allenby over long-on for a massive six. He then added finesse after the flog by deftly cutting the all-rounder for four before Hogan returned to the attack shortly before lunch.

After a morning around the country when wickets had fallen like leaves in an autumnal storm, the probing new ball spell by the Glamorgan seamers meant that Hampshire began the afternoon session on 91/5. It might have immediately become 91/6 but David Lloyd at deep square-leg dropped a miscued pull by James Vince (on 47) against Michael Hogan. Sean Ervine then found the ropes as he firstly steered a no-ball from Graham Wagg to third man for four before on-driving the left-armer.


Vince then completed his fifty from 65 balls before celebrating with a pair of sumptuous fours against Hogan - the first through extra cover and the second to the boards at long-on. Ervine then swatted a short ball from Wagg through point before guiding the bowler through backward point as the sixth wicket pair continued to improve Hampshire's position.


Jim Allenby then returned, with the Hampshire batsmen being briefly distracted by a squirrel which spent several minutes scampering around in front of the sightscreen at the River End. After it leapt over an advertising board, and out of the batsmen's eye-line, Vince drilled Allenby through extra cover. Ervine then late cut Hogan for another four before square-cutting Wagg to complete a 59-ball fifty.


Dean Cosker's spin was then introduced at the River End shortly before Vince brought up the century stand with a cover driven four against the twirler. Ervine also swept Cosker to the mid-wicket boards before surviving a loud appeal for l.b.w. as David Lloyd returned to the attack. Vince added another further fours to his tally as he cover drove Cosker twice in the space of three balls, before clipping Lloyd to mid-wicket en route to a 134-ball century, decorated with 17 fours.


Kieran Bull's off-spin was then introduced half an hour before tea with Vince clipping the youngster to mid-wicket for a single as he became the leading run-scorer this year in the four-day competition. Ervine then pulled Bull for four before Vince off-drove Lloyd .

If the morning session belonged to Glamorgan, the afternoon was definitely Hampshire's as James Vince and Sean Ervine sharing a stand which saw Hampshire to their first batting point with the former benefitting from a moment of good fortune in the first over after lunch. He went on to post his fourth, and potentially most influential century of the summer, besides being the country's leading run scorer in the four-day competition, with his efforts seeing the South Coast recover from 53/5 to 233/5 at tea.


Ervine began the session by biffing Kieran Bull to long-on for four whilst Vince did the same to long-off against the teenager as Hampshire moved closer to their second batting point and a new sixth wicket record against Glamorgan. Both came in Allenby's sixteenth over as Ervine clipped the all-rounder to mid-wicket with their efforts beating the 198 added by George Brown and William Shirley at Southampton in1922 which had been Hampshire's previous best sixth wicket stand in Championship cricket against the Welsh county.


Bull who had beaten the outside edge of Ervine's bat before tea, found the edge of both batsmen's blades, but on each occasion the ball fell short of the close catchers. But Bull got his reward for an accurate spell as Vince on 144 pulled him in the air to deep mid-wicket where debutant Aneurin Donald held a good tumbling catch. Chris Wood came in and immediately made his intentions clear as he drilled Dean Cosker to long-on before mowing Bull to deep mid-wicket followed by a lofted drive for six into the River Enclosures.


Glamorgan immediately took the new ball as Wagg returned, with Ervine steering the first ball to the vacant third man position to reach his century - from 174 balls - and to secure a third batting point. But Wagg gained revenge as with Hampshire on 310 Ervine faintly clipped a ball down the leg-side with Mark Wallace completing the catch.


Further wickets fell to the new ball as three runs later Matt Coles miscued a drive against Michael Hogan into Bragg's hands at extra cover. Wood then pulled and off-drove Wagg in successive balls to the ropes before Imran Tahir was dropped at slip as he edged an expansive drive against Jim Allenby. Wood then edged Hogan just short of second slip, but a couple of balls later the Australian yorked Wood as Hampshire lost their ninth wicket on 335.


James Tomlinson and Imran Tahir then used the long handle to take Hampshire to another batting point, with the latter swatting Allenby to backward point to take the total past the 350-mark. But their merry spree ended as Tomlinson was caught behind with the total on 357.