Lots of playing and missing which would indicate there is still plenty in the pitch. It all depends on what we can set them. 139 to knock off first so to make them chase 150 in the 4th innings, we need to get 288, have we got the right team to do that. Again, we had a side in trouble, this time 6 down and still they more than double the score.

Think the weather DID help us, doubt we would have won this one so 8 points will do and we haven't played well at all from the moment they rallied from 150-7.

Amazing to have a 7.20 finish and yet the public are short changed again in the Test where some people pay £100 for a ticket. When will the authorities who supposedly run this game, going to do something. Tickets years ago used to be the same price as an vinyl album. I paid £4 to watch England v Pakistan in 1982 and that is the equivalent now of £14.16.

Same old story. 6-7 down and then we turn into Warwickshire 1982 style. Our new signing got carted a bit and makes me wonder how he has taken all those wickets. Any chance we had of catching Surrey up a little has gone because the weather for Saturday looks like a wash-out and if we could have cleaned Lancs up for 180 we could be making inroads now and moving it on tomorrow and even looking to finish on Friday. Too much time will be eaten up by this tail-wagging and tomorrow will see us having to get up somewhere near their score and that will take even more time out of the game. A poor day.

Are you with the Met Office or do you have all this detail to hand, very impressive, hope you are right, I am there for all 4 days.

Weather looks poor for Old Trafford so the Australians might play safe and just look to bat as long as they can. If we need to win the last 2 Tests, then it does not look good and Stokes might regret certain decisions made in the first 2 Tests but of course he will not admit it.

Certainly his record looks extremely good, unfortunately the weather does not. I feel that the weather situation will affect the CC and the Ashes unless we get a sudden change.

Amazing that the Australian team are often heard to criticise English crowds and yet the behaviour of Australian crowds and media in general when England visit, is nothing short of revolting. If you watch the cricket film/doc 'Death of a Gentleman' there are scenes on there that would make anyone feel uneasy and the way English cricketers are constantly made to feel unwelcome is staggering and the attempts to try and 'Have a dig' at every opportunity cannot be easy for a cricketer who feels intimidated as soon as the plane lands.

And Surrey also lost 3 in a row from 1979-1981, a Gillette either side of 2 B & H. Also, I found amazing that we are regarded as losers on one BBC site from a few years ago because of all the finals we have lost but then at the end it does state that we have won 9 finals but that in itself does not make us 'Losers' compared to some sides who have hardly even appeared in many finals. The fact that only Lancashire have won more than us, does not put us in a losers bracket. Idiots.

I am trying to get a list of Lord's finals on ANY site but it seems impossible but since 2000, Somerset have been runners-up in the CC 6times and the T20 4 times. I know they lost 2 Lords finals in 2010 and 2011. They did win a Lord's final in 2001 but since 2000 their losses far outweigh their triumphs.

Yes they did but the amount of runners-up medals that they have mounted up over the years is huge including 3 in 2010. I have lost count of the amount of 2nd's they have 'Achieved'.

Well done Somerset to defend 2 scores below 150 is superb, they have won more game than anyone whilst winning the title and we cannot have any complaints. Glad Samms didn't win it for Essex and at last Somerset fans after paying out enormous amounts of dosh over the years to travel to finals, can actually go home with a smile on their faces and a trophy.

LeicesterExile, that does not make it any better as it is only Essex' 10th win so far and we won 11 in the group. Please someone, change the rules so they are like the 50-over competition and we could be at least in with a chance of finals day instead of watching sides (bar Somerset) who's record to qualify, was not as god as ours, play a semi-final today.

Hope Somerset win, only because I would hate any of the others to do so.

GerryShedd, I seem to recall Dennis Amiss in his first book 'In Search of Runs', saying that the pitch was damp but they could have played on a perfectly dry one next to it that was covered better. The BBC refused to move their cameras so the damp one was used and on a drying pitch, scoring was difficult.

That Maxwell bloke can score pretty quickly can't he.

We will take that as being a good day with power to add tomorrow. Kent are a poor side so we must take advantage.

I suppose they look at him as a spin option but he very rarely bowls a side out although he can certainly bat. Strange that he averages just under 40 and yet has only got 7 hundreds.

SC_Bear, my thoughts exactly, now is not the time for risks, Bairstow has no form, the reverse of last season and Foakes is in form and we know he can bat. We also do not want a flat wicket as all Australia have to do is make a huge score and the Ashes are theirs. Woakes, what man, a controlled innings even though he did score quickly but didn't try and hit everything like he did in the first innings. I can relax now, Pheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

SC_Bear, yes I agree that a good group campaign can be totally undone by one bad performance, Hampshire won the T20 title in 2010 after losing 8 of the 16 games played and scraping through by 0.2 of a net run-rate. Then they beat a certain county from the Midlands (who waltzed through their group finishing top) to eliminate them in the quarter finals. And the point you make about the RL cup is something that I would like to see in the T20, reward the teams who finish top, they are there for a reason, they have bettered everyone else.