County Championship: Matt Henry sets up Somerset win over Northamptonshire

Matt Henry has now taken 26 wickets in five Championship appearances for Somerset

Matt Henry followed up his T20 Finals Day heroics with five wickets to set up a nine-wicket victory for Somerset over Northamptonshire on day three of their County Championship match at Wantage Road.

Henry, player of the match in Saturday's Vitality Blast triumph, continued to prosper with red ball in hand, finishing with figures of 5-73 and eight in the match.

Northamptonshire resumed still 20 behind and six wickets down after following on Thursday afternoon.

They reached 224 all out thanks to skipper Luke Procter's undefeated 87 off 128 balls - his highest score of the season - ensuring Somerset needed to bat again, but it was not enough to set the visitors a challenging target.

Somerset duly knocked off the 54 runs required inside 11 overs before lunch to continue their winning ways, with Tom Lammonby powering six boundaries in an undefeated innings of 30.

Earlier, Procter and Tom Taylor (32) extended their seventh wicket partnership to 53 before Henry trapped Taylor lbw to claim his fourth scalp of the innings.

With Australian overseas batter Sam Whiteman absent following the birth of his daughter, Northamptonshire were effectively eight wickets down and only six runs ahead.

Procter, the last recognised batter, had already reached his half-century off 94 balls, and joined by Ben Sanderson, decided to take the offensive option against Henry and Craig Overton.

He quickly switched from rearguard mode into Bazball territory, hooking and powering balls through midwicket and mid-on. He played an audacious upper cut over the keeper's head off Overton, as well as playing some perfectly timed late cuts behind square.

Sanderson also played some expansive shots before he chipped a Henry delivery back to the bowler, the Kiwi taking a tumbling return catch to claim his fifth wicket.

Jack White supported Procter for a while but became Overton's third wicket when he pushed at a ball on off-stump and Tom Abell pouched the catch at first slip.

When Somerset began the chase, Lammonby drove Sanderson's second delivery down the ground for four, but was dropped at third slip when he offered a difficult chance later in the over.

Sean Dickson drove White firmly through the covers for four but did not add any more to his total thanks to a lazy push outside off to a ball from Sanderson, with keeper Lewis McManus taking a tumbling catch.

Abell took consecutive boundaries off White before Lammonby sealed the win by smashing Sanderson down the ground for four.

Northamptonshire captain Luke Procter:

"We haven't been good enough. I feel Somerset got 100, 150 runs more than they should have, and we got 50 to 100 runs less than we then we should have. The pitch seemed to quicken up a little bit. We didn't expect it to go that quick and nip around that much.

"We've hopefully got an overseas player coming, so hopefully he'll fit in nicely. The physio has to give our bowlers a rub and get them on the park again.

"We've got a tough run-in to the Championship. Somerset are obviously a good team and they've shown that this game."

Somerset skipper Tom Abell:

"It was a perfect end to a pretty good week for us. We were inserted on a pitch that was pretty tricky and the collective contribution was the most pleasing thing.

"We had contributions all the way down. Then the way the boys bowled first innings and backed it up, particularly after a pretty physical weekend,

"it was a huge effort. As a captain, I was very grateful for that. They showed their qualities with the ball and it was backed up in the field, so I couldn't be more happy."

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network.