Thread by @TomEvansEcho

As you can maybe see, it’s 15/0. Northern are batting.

Jack Boardman and Liam Grey are getting the league leaders off to a strong start, getting stuck into anything off length. Sefton’s two best performances this season have been here, batting second, against Ormskirk and Formby - they might need to find another level here. 29/0.

Ayan Madhu underpitches one to Boardman and gets eased through point; then he overcompensates and gets clipped through mid-on. Fast outfield and a short square boundary to the pavilion side. 41/0.

50 up for the openers inside eight overs. Northern picking up where they left off after scoring 416 in 45 overs last Sunday.

Half a glimmer for Madhu as Grey doesn’t get on top of a cut; but it flies through the slips for four. 55/0.

Bit of leg spin now as Raheem Kasser has a go from the Smithdown Road end. The short boundary is at mid-wicket - might be a tempter for the two RHBs. 71/0 from 11.

Boardman skews a mishit down the ground for four, then gets hold of a long hop for six. A single brings up his 50. 82/0 from 12; Kemar Smith on from the park end.

Boardman cracks Smith into the trees, then cloths one horribly but safely to long-on. Most of what he tries is coming off and he’s getting away with the rest. He’s on 66 and the score is 100/0 from just 14 overs.

Finally Boardman tries something - a hoick to leg off Kasser - that doesn’t come off, and he’s bowled for 71. Sefton. Needed. That. 117/1 in the 17th.

Wicket has slowed things down a lot. Grey, who’s on 42, happy to rotate the strike with Chris Laker. 130/1 from 20.

Grey gets one through, then runs three and takes an overthrow to move to 50. 139/1 from 21 overs. Northern well in command.

Laker decides he’s seen enough of Kasser and launches him inside out over extra cover, then cracks him for four down the ground. Seems the lull in the scoring rate was temporary. 152/1 from 23.

The players have had a drink and I’ve worked out that the gentlemen behind me talking about “Coley” are referring to Northern’s captain, not India’s.

Grey takes his first risk for a while, a lofted drive off Smith that somehow clears long-off and goes for four. He’s on 61; Northern 168/1 from 28 overs.

Laker goes for a big drive off Smith and edges to slip, where Richie Conlan holds a sharp chance. 176/2. Andrew Clarke the new man.

And another - one ball after easing Kasser through mid-wicket for four, Grey nails one which skipper Jimmy Dixon holds above his head. His well-made 73 is over; maybe, just maybe, Sefton have themselves an opening. 180/3. Ryan Maddock the new man.

Ooh and he should be run out first ball, Dixon’s throw beats him but Scott Aitchison can’t gather.

But now Smith gets Clarke, trying to hit the ball out of the ground but merely feathering it to Aitchison, who gleefully took the chance to atone. 180/4. Ben Sloan, fresh off a century in the cup on Sunday, at the crease sooner than he’d have expected a few minutes ago.

Now Smith gets Sloan playing on. This is some comeback by the hosts. James ‘Virat’ Cole comes to the crease at 184/5.

Maddock plays on to Kasser. Incredible stuff. It’s hard to say what’s caused it - think it’s just unwise aggression from new batters against the spinners. 176/1 to 190/6.

Smith has a 6-3 offside field to the left-handed Scott Snaylam, daring him to hit across the line. He resists. For now... 193/6 from 38 overs.

Misfield relieves the pressure, but apart from that this is so much better from Sefton. 201/6 from 40 overs. Still rather be Northern here but the last half hour has belonged to the hosts.

Smith has been terrific. He’s getting a lot of bounce and raps Cole on the gloves twice in succession. Very smooth action. 207/6 from 42. Final batting point 13 away - it’s been a lot harder going than it looked like being.

Kasser is convinced Cole has nicked to slip - Cole and the umpires disagree. The skipper then frees his arms against Smith, belting three boundaries to move the score on to 235/6. Then he holes out to long-off to give Kasser his fourth wicket. That was an eventful tweet.

Kasser bowls Tom Grey after some more declaration slogging from Snaylam - that’s five for the young leggie. 244/8 from 48 overs.

Fine catch on the boundary from Mark Chappell to remove Snaylam. 244/9. Four for Smith.

Tom Sephton launches Kasser over long on. Then he tries for a repeat but is caught by Adam Taylor. Northern 253 all out - a good few dozen short of where they might have been, but still a very challenging total. Kasser finishes with 6/96.

I had a few of the batters mixed up towards the end. Scoreboard’s fault.

Northern of course failed to defend 240 against Rainhill last week - but it took a special innings from Tyler McGladdery to chase that down. Do Sefton have anyone who can play that kind of knock?

Rob Supria and Ayan Madhu to open for the hosts. Tom Sephton coming off his long run, which is still quite short. Supria creams the first ball through the covers.

Liam Grey’s run is somewhat longer. He will bowl the second over.

Madhu doesn’t look comfortable for any of his three balls, and he nicks the third to Cole. 4/1.

Adam Taylor is LBW first ball - he was setting off confidently for leg byes... Kemar Smith next in. This is not what Sefton wanted, safe to say. 4/2.

The cordon is packed for the hat-trick ball... and Smith edges it JUST shy of fourth.

Supria advances to Sephton... and cloths him horribly to a sprawling mid-on. With fielders around the bat, I get the intent, but the execution wasn’t there. 4/3.

Five slips and a gully as Grey continues to Smith. The Bajan drives him through mid-off then nicks him just wide of fifth slip. Somewhere, Ian Botham’s eyes glaze over as he says “where was the sixth slip?”.

A glance to leg makes it three boundaries from the over. Smith - who top scored with 90 when Sefton chased 220+ against Formby - will not go down wondering. 16/3.

Cole calls for Andrew Clarke’s offies against the left-handed Leo Spilsbury.

But Grey v Smith is the game right now. The slips go on and on like the control panel in Airplane. An appeal for a catch off a thigh pad. A shooter outside off. A sliced drive through backward point. Gripping stuff.

Sephton back on now. Grey hurls himself at Smith again. A very tight single gets him to the other end. Short leg comes in for Spilsbury. He gets off the mark with a push and run. 20/3.

Smith goes, padding up to Sephton. He’s not happy, having done all the hard work against Grey. Long, long way back now. 33/4.

Spilsbury next to go; some nice shots but fails to get over a sweep off Sephton and short mid-wicket takes a sharp low catch. 46/5.

Richie Conlan aims a big drive at Grey and has his middle stump pegged back. 51/6.

The new batter is a change to the line-up in the programme, Tom Heard - in a weird coincidence, I knew this because I detected someone saying it. Meanwhile Scott Aitchison skews Septhon to mid-off. 51/7.

Ryan Maddock replaces Grey, whose opening burst has effectively settled this game. Strange, loping run-up that bursts into life at the end. 57/7.

Little bit to applaud for the home supporters as Mark Chapple accepts Sephton’s invitation to drive, and smokes a four down the ground. Then Heard guides Maddock to the boundary behind square. 76/7. Target a distant 254 though.

As I hit send, Andrew Clarke hangs on to a sharp chance at second slip. Heard gone for 15. 76/8.

Sefton have now lost just one wicket in the last 10 overs though - the lower order showing it is possible to play these bowlers on this pitch.

Justin Snow replacing Maddock, who hasn’t tested the batters as much as he’d have liked. Raheem Kasser squirts one through point for four. 88/8. 12 runs to a batting point.

There’s the breakthrough- Sephton skids one into Chapple’s pads. Another five-for for the left-armer. 92/9.

Sorry, Chappell.

All over. Kasser cuts Sephton for four to earn a batting point, then slices a catch to a diving cover. All out for 103 - Northern win by 150 runs.

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