Worcestershire Seconds are in a strong position after a five-wicket haul from Josh Tongue, and a quickfire half-century from Alex Milton helped set up a victory push against Somerset Seconds on the third day of the Second Eleven Championship match at Taunton Vale.
Tongue finished with 5-60 from 16 overs as Worcestershire bowled out the home side in their first innings for 206 to establish a massive lead of 260.
Captain Ross Whiteley opted not to enforce the follow on, and solid contributions from several players, including a 54 ball fifty from Milton, set up a declaration at 226-5 and a target of 487.
Tongue and Adam Finch both picked up a wicket as Somerset closed on 52-2.
Worcestershire quickly wrapped up the Somerset first innings after they had resumed on 183-6. The last four wickets fell this morning for 23 runs in 11 overs.
Tongue and Mitchell Stanley claimed two wickets apiece to leave Lewis Goldsworthy unbeaten on 68.
George Drissell (31) was the first to depart when, after trying to cut a ball of extra bounce from Tongue, he could only pick out Milton.
Four balls later, Ned Leonard (0) pushed forward to Tongue and nicked through to Milton.
Stanley also struck twice in the same over with George Thomas (10) caught and bowled off a skier after attempting a pull and Sonny Baker (0) clean bowled after pushing forward. Stanley ended with 2-28 captain Whiteley (2-17) and Finch (1-49).
Worcestershire openers Jack Haynes and Josh Dell followed up their century partnership on day one with another fine start.
They stretched the Worcestershire advantage past 300 and put on 68 in 18.2 overs before Haynes (37) fenced at a ball outside the off stump from Leonard and edged through to the keeper.
Dell followed his first-innings 82 with an accomplished 48 before he was caught behind off Thomas and the same bowler accounted for Jacques Banton (31), who chopped onto his stumps.
Whiteley, who had top-scored with 92 in the first innings, lofted his first delivery – from Thomas – straight into the hands of cover, and Euan Woods (22) went back to George Drissell and was lbw.
But Milton reeled off some fine strokes and hit Jack Harding for a six backward of square before cover-driving the same bowler for his fourth boundary to complete his fifty, and he remained unbeaten on 52.
Somerset quickly ran into trouble when they began their second innings, and Ben Green (9) slashed the last ball of a Finch delivery to point.
It became two wickets in two balls when the first ball of Tongue’s next over found the edge of Ed Byrom’s bat when on 11 and Milton produced a fine low catch.
Tongue ended with figures of 7-1-17-1 and Finch 7-1-14-1.
