Leading from the front Skipper is star as county break win duck
JACK Taylor made match-winning contributions with bat and ball as Gloucestershire carved out a five-wicket win over arch rivals Somerset in the Royal London Oneday encounter at Bristol.
Gloucestershire’s captain returned figures of 4-31 with his leg breaks and then made an unbeaten 77 as the home side chased down a victory target of 200 with 7.1 overs to spare.
Somerset won the toss, posted 57 without loss in 10 overs and then slumped to 112-7, one batsman after another giving their wicket away cheaply. Lewis Goldsworthy mustered a defiant 66, from 103 balls, but the visitors were bowled out for 199 in 47.4 overs, with slow left armer Tom Smith taking 2-29 in support of Taylor.
Marcus Harris proved the mainstay of Gloucestershire’s reply, raising 59 from 90 balls, before Taylor and Zafar Gohar finished the job off.
Following back-to-back defeats to Warwickshire and Sussex, Gloucestershire will be relieved to have finally broken their duck.
There was no sign of the trouble that lay ahead as Matt Renshaw and Steve Davies staged a productive opening stand of 57 in 10.2 overs, justifying the decision to bat first.
Renshaw made 38 from 45 balls, but the Australian flirted with danger outside off stump and twice survived confident caught behind appeals before eventually edging Jared Warner to James Bracey.
The introduction of spin from both ends yielded instant dividends, Davies and James Hildreth both falling to poor shots in successive overs as the visitors lurched from 72-1 to 75-3 in the space of seven deliveries.
Taylor and Smith both struck with their first balls, the former inducing Davies to hit a full toss to Oli Price at cover for 18 and the latter bowling Hildreth for one.
George Bartlett was comprehensively run out by Chris Dent for seven after being sent back by Goldsworthy, then James Rew attempted to sweep Taylor and was caught by Bracey down the leg side, while Ben Green was held by the diving Price at mid-on as Somerset subsided 111-6 in the 27th over.
Kasey Aldridge missed a straight ball on off stump and was bowled by Pakistani slow left armer Zafar, at which point Goldsworthy represented Somerset’s last realistic hope of posting a competitive score.
The 21-year-old Cornishman played responsibly to chisel 50 from 81 balls. He found a willing ally in Siddle, the eighth wicket pair adding 67 in 16 overs to at least partially rebuild the innings.
Siddle struck a straight six and a brace of fours before playing across the line and being bowled by Taylor for 29.
Taylor bowled Goldsworthy in the 46th over and Paul van Meekeren accounted for Jack Brooks as Somerset were dismissed with 14 balls unused.
New ball bowlers Aldridge and Brooks swept aside openers Chris Dent (3) and Ben Wells (15) respectively inside six overs.
Siddle bowled Bracey for 15 and when Price hoisted Goldsworthy’s slow left arm straight to deep mid-wicket, Gloucestershire were 69-4 and experiencing a degree of discomfiture.
Harris offered reassurance, staging a restorative stand of 75 in 18 overs for the fifth wicket with skipper Taylor, who initially suppressed his naturally attacking instincts to play the supporting role that was the order of the day.
Harris registered 50 from 82 deliveries, only to then spoon a slower ball from Aldridge to backward point with Gloucestershire in need of 56 more runs from 15.3 overs and the result still in doubt.
Dropped on 10 by Renshaw at slip off the bowling of Green, Zafar made good his escape to score 18 not out, while Taylor went to an 83-ball 50 with a huge six over long-on off the same bowler to calm any lingering nerves.