11 May 2015 | Cricket
Glamorgan's Michael Hogan took 4 wickets on Day 1 of the County Championship clash against Canterbury at Kent. The Australian seam bowler has recently returned to the side after an 8 week lay-off with injury, picked up while playing for Western Australia.
Kent opening batsman Daniel Bell-Drummond struck his second LV= County Championship Division Two century in five days to give his winless side a solid start to their clash with Glamorgan.
The 21-year-old, fresh from his 103 against Leicestershire in Canterbury on Wednesday, mastered a very different pitch at the Spitfire Ground to post a season's best 123 in Kent's first-day total of 330 for eight from 95.1 overs.
Batting first on an unusually green surface which had been cut to five millimetres rather than the usual three, Bell-Drummond soon looked at home on the surface to feature in a season's best opening stand with Joe Denly.
The pair added 68 before Denly became the sole casualty of the first session. Fencing at a Michael Hogan leg-cutter, he edged to third slip to be caught low down by Jacques Rudolph for 30.
Bell-Drummond joined forces with Brendan Nash to add a further 66 either side of lunch before former West Indies Test batsman Nash perished during an excellent seven-over stint of 1-12 from Hogan at the Nackington Road End. Aiming to drive on the up at a length ball, the left-hander edged to the wicketkeeper and trudged off castigating his own shot selection.
Sam Northeast - Kent's acting captain in the absence of Rob Key, who asked to be omitted following a run of poor form stretching back to last summer - followed soon after for eight.
Having hit half-centuries in Kent's opening three fixtures, Northeast played around a Craig Meschede off-cutter and went lbw to make it 145 for three.
Fabian Cowdrey, Key's replacement in the home batting order, had 14 to his name when he drove loosely against David Lloyd and feathered a regulation catch into the gloves of Mark Wallace.
The hosts regrouped either side of the tea break through Bell-Drummond and Darren Stevens, with a fifth-wicket stand worth 85. Bell-Drummond pulled a loose delivery from Meschede for four to the ropes at midwicket for a 16th boundary which brought up his 249-ball century.
The Millfield School prodigy jumped for joy and then removed his helmet to accept the acclaim from the crowd and players' balcony, but was soon removing his helmet for a very different reason after being hit on the head by an accidental beamer from Lloyd.
Although the delivery was called a no-ball by umpire Nick Cook, Bell-Drummond was clearly shaken by events and only continued after treatment and with a replacement helmet. He was out soon after, leg before when half-forward in defence to the second delivery with the second new ball from Hogan.
Glamorgan continued their fightback with gusto thereafter by picking up three more Kent wickets in the final 12 overs of the day.
Stevens, having just recorded a breezy, chanceless fifty from 75 balls, fell into Rudolph's leg theory trap by glancing a delivery off his hip from Graham Wagg into the hands of the Glamorgan captain - who had just stationed himself at backward short-leg.
Sam Billings' cameo stay for 26 ended when he skied a Meschede bouncer to Chris Cooke at gully, then, in the day's final over, Calum Haggett fenced at a ball from the excellent Hogan to again pick out Rudolph in the cordon. Hogan, the pick of Glamorgan's attack, finished the day with 4-53.
The Australian paceman, who endured eight weeks of rehabilitation after picking up a pre-season hamstring injury, said all the hard work had been repaid with his four-wicket haul.
I'm tired but happy, the 33-year-old reflected. We'd spoken about restricting the number of overs I would bowl coming back from injury, but I've smashed right through that today with 24 overs.
It's fine having these theories, but when you're out there and the adrenalin's flowing you just want to keep doing well for the team regardless. It felt good to get some good hard work under my belt.
I've had a good 10 minutes in the ice bath which was sort of refreshing, I've rehydrated with water and now I'm going to duck over the road to the Bat & Ball to celebrate my four wickets with a pint!
Northeast was content with his side's first day performance and also praised Key's decision to stand down from selection while he rediscovers his form.
Rob made the decision himself and passed on his views to the senior management, Northeast said: He's not felt in the best of form and thought it best to drop down to the seconds to get some confidence and runs under his belt.
It's a courageous thing for any captain to do and I have to respect him for that decision, absolutely. He's done it for the good of the team, which is creditable in its own right. I'm sure we'll see him back in a Kent shirt very soon.