the first of his List A career – Hampshire were tied down to 226 for 7 off their 45 overs, mainly thanks to three for 30 from Australian Damien Wright. Six wides from Chris Tremlett, who conceded 51 runs off his eight overs then cost Hampshire the game after Shaun Udal had taken three wickets to set Northamptonshire Steelbacks back to 135 for 5. David Sales added 49 with Wright before Ben Phillips guided Northamptonshire to four points with 26 off 12 balls and secured a win with ten balls to spare. (Cricinfo scorecard) Nottinghamshire v Essex (30 May) Essex (4pts) beat Nottinghamshire (0pts) by six wickets Former England international Darren Gough took four wickets for 16 runs, including both opening batsmen, as Essex Eagles strolled to a six-wicket win at Trent Bridge over Nottinghamshire Outlaws. Nottinghamshire were bowled out for 154 as Essex off-spinner James Middlebrook chipped in with two for 27 including the wicket of top-scorer David Hussey. Essex' batsmen all got starts in the chase, and captain Ronnie Irani, opening the batting, anchored the innings with a fine run-a-ball 53. (Cricinfo scorecard) Worcestershire v Middlesex (30 May) Middlesex (4pts) beat Worcestershire (0pts) by 32 runs Middlesex Crusaders were lifted by a massive 160-run partnership between New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris and former England Test player Ed Smith as they assembled 224 for 7 in a rain-shortened match at Worcester, in which Worcestershire's bowlers delivered six maiden overs. However, Worcestershire Royals' reply were hampered by wickets falling everywhere, along with lack of responsibility to keep the run-rate up, as Vikram Solanki made 40 off 66 balls and Zander de Bruyn 55 off 74 – too slow to chase 225 in 44 overs. When Gareth Batty was run out, a rot set in, as Worcestershire lost five wickets for 15 runs and were forced to crawl to 192 for 9. (Cricinfo scorecard) Table on 30 May First Sunday in June Middlesex v Essex (5 June) Essex (4pts) beat Middlesex (0pts) by one wicket Essex Eagles won the top of the table clash in the National League against Middlesex Crusaders at Lord's, a match which the visitors looked certain to lose many times. Middlesex' innings opened slowly, as Paul Weekes and Ed Smith paired up for 101 for the first wicket but not scoring many runs in the process. A burst of wickets followed, which reduced Middlesex to 144 for