Lancashire in struggle to stave off follow-on

Replying to the visitors’ 553 for eight declared, Steven Croft’s batsmen had reached 138 for two at stumps.

However, they have already lost their youthful openers. Haseeb Hameed was caught behind by Davies off Tim Groenewald for 56, his 11th Championship score over 50 in 23 innings this season, and Rob Jones was very smartly run out for 34 by the same bowler.

At the close Alviro Petersen was undefeated on 25 and Liam Livingstone was 20 not out, but the follow-on target of 404 was still very distant and Lancashire’s players may already be eyeing Saturday’s dismal weather forecast with relief.

Earlier in the day Somerset’s eighth-wicket pair, Trego and Davies, completely dominated the morning’s play by adding 146 runs in 31 overs before lunch.

By that stage the partnership was already an eighth-wicket record between the two counties which eclipsed the 163 added by Jeremy Lloyds and Martin Crowe at Bath in 1984.

Lancashire’s bowlers suffered a little ill luck early in the session but they were gradually mastered by the Somerset batsmen. In the afternoon Trego finished on a career-best 154 not out - his second ton of the season - and had put on 236 with Davies before the Somerset wicketkeeper-batsman played on to Tom Bailey for 86.

By then, however, his stand with Trego represented an eighth-wicket record for the county, beating the 217 put on by Roelof van der Merwe and Craig Overton against Hampshire earlier this season. Bailey finished with five for 111 and he was the only Lancashire bowler to take a wicket on the second day.

One of Lancashire’s youngest opening partnerships in recent seasons then made solid progress before Hameed nibbled at a good ball from Groenewald and Jones, having played a straight drive, was run out by a lightning fast pick-up and throw from the bowler.

Petersen then had a let off on two when he was dropped by Chris Rogers at mid-off, Groenewald being the unlucky bowler, but Petersen passed 1,000 runs for the season when he reached 24.