Cooke leads cautious Glamorgan reply

Murray Goodwin showed he has lost none of his appetite for runs in his 41st year but the veteran was upstaged by Chris Cooke, 13 years his junior, as Glamorgan responded cautiously to Hampshire's first-innings total of 349.

At the close of the second day at Southampton, after Goodwin had laboured more than three hours for his 51, Cooke had recorded his first half-century and was unbeaten on 73. Glamorgan ended 123 behind on 226 for 4 from 67 overs, with South African-born Cooke having so far hit 14 fours in a stay of 103 balls.

Hampshire were 261 for 6 overnight and added a further 88, with pace bowler John Glover taking two of the four wickets to fall in the morning session. James Vince, 51 not out, added another 10 runs before Graham Wagg found the edge and captain Mark Wallace took his fifth catch of the innings. Adam Wheater followed at 305 when Glover had him caught by William Bragg, and Glover struck again at 322 when he broke through Sohail Tanvir's defences.

Chris Wood hit a robust unbeaten 32, including a six off Dean Cosker, but the experienced spinner ended the innings when last-man David Griffiths edged him to Marcus North at slip.

Glamorgan did not make the most promising of starts, Tanvir bowling Bragg for 12 before Griffiths removed Bragg's opening partner Gareth Rees on 45, knocking back his off stump. Glamorgan's hopes rested on North and Goodwin, their most tested batsmen, and they responded on a wicket easing all the time with a stand of 70 for the third wicket in 24 overs.

North went at 115, bowled by a sharp delivery from left-arm pacer Wood after making 36, but Goodwin dug in. With Cooke, Goodwin added another 55 important runs to blunt the Hampshire attack in the afternoon session.

But after facing 120 balls and hitting seven fours, it was almost a surprise when the obdurate Goodwin, in sight of his 23,000th first class run, was leg before to spin bowler Danny Briggs with an indeterminate shot. That did not stop Cooke, whose previous best first class score was 44, and with Jim Allenby for company, the fifth-wicket pair added 56 in the evening sunshine. Allenby went in 15 not out while Cooke's innings has so far occupied 103 balls and included 14 fours.