Arsenal are a club with a proud history of developing and promoting young talent.

During his time in the dugout, Mikel Arteta has more than done his part to continue that tradition, with the likes of Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah and Bukayo Saka all getting serious runs in the team under him.

The latest batch of youngsters to come through are perhaps the most exciting in a long time, with Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri now permanent fixtures in the first team squad and Max Dowman sure to follow suit as the season goes on.

However, Arsenal are clearly looking to bring in young talent from elsewhere as well, and Andrea Berta has already overseen the signing of a teen phenom who could be another Dowman.

Why Dowman is such an exciting prospect

The most successful academy gem Arsenal have produced in the last couple of decades is undoubtedly Saka, as the 24-year-old has already made 285 appearances for the club since his debut.

However, there is a genuine belief among those in the know that Dowman could go on to be an even bigger star than the club’s current talisman.

Don’t just take our word for it, though, as early last season, respected talent scout Jacek Kulig made the bold claim that the then-14-year-old was the “most exciting prospect” he had seen “since Lamine Yamal.”

As if that wasn’t enough, Hale End expert Will Balsam then described the teenager as “one of the greatest footballing brains that’s ever come through Hale End” and “the biggest talent in England.”

That is certainly a lot of praise for someone so young, but the Chelmsford-born gem would more than justify it over the season, as he racked up a tally of 19 goals and five assists in 23 appearances, totalling 1945 minutes last season.

Dowman in 24/25

Appearances

23

Minutes

1945′

Goals

19

Assists

5

Goal Involvements per Match

1.04

Minutes per Goal Involvement

81.04′

All Stats via Transfermarkt

Such an incredible rate of return for someone so young saw Arteta take him on the pre-season tour, where he played against Newcastle United, a game in which analyst Ben Mattinson pointed out that he “hasn’t even done his GCSE’s but he’s humiliating Premier League players.”

The impressive achievements kept coming into the season proper, as he made his Premier League debut against Leeds United, became the club’s youngest starter and also the youngest player in Champions League history.

In all, the hype might sound hyperbolic, but it’s not, and so Arsenal fans should be seriously excited about the fact that Berta may have just signed the club another Dowman-like talent.

Arsenal's new Dowman

Since being appointed as the club’s Sporting Director, Berta has been ambitious and aggressive with his transfer dealings.

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He oversaw eight additions to the first team in the summer and has now also helped secure two of the most exciting youngsters in world football.

Earlier this month, Arsenal announced that they had signed Edwin and Holger Quintero from Ecuadorian side Independiente del Valle, and that, once they were 18 years old in 2027, they’d join the team.

Both youngsters are hugely exciting prospects, but it’s Edwin who could be another Dowman.

One of the reasons for this is that, in the words of Mattinson, he is a wide player who has “the ability to run games and create something out of nothing.”

For anyone who has watched the Englishman at academy level, and even to some extent during his first team appearances, that would be an excellent way to describe him.

Subscribe to the newsletter for Arsenal youth scouting Discover deeper Arsenal youth analysis—subscribe to our newsletter for expert scout breakdowns, detailed talent profiles, and transfer context that frame emerging prospects like Dowman or Quintero within the club’s long-term development picture and broader squad narrative. Subscribe Subscribe to the newsletter for Arsenal youth scouting Discover deeper Arsenal youth analysis—subscribe to our newsletter for expert scout breakdowns, detailed talent profiles, and transfer context that frame emerging prospects like Dowman or Quintero within the club’s long-term development picture and broader squad narrative.

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More than that, though, the 16-year-old is, in the words of Kulig, “an absolute joy to watch” and a “10/10 talent.”

Another reason for the comparison and why the Emirates faithful will adore him is that he loves to take opposing players on.

Unlike a lot of modern wingers, the teenager’s first instinct in attacking situations seems to be to go right at his opposite number and, in the words of U23 scout Antonio Mango, is “skilful and fearless” when doing so.

Ultimately, the combination of his incredible close control, desire to make something happen, and the potential so many believe he possesses makes Edwin Quintero look a lot like another Dowman-like prospect, and one Arsenal should be delighted to have on the books.

Related 116 touches & 87 passes: Arteta's 8/10 Arsenal star was better than Saka

It was yet another stellar performance for the Arsenal star, who played even better than Bukayo Saka.

Posts ByJack Salveson Holmes

According to reports in The Mirror on Thursday, Everton are reportedly confident they will beat Southampton to the £20m signing of out of favour Arsenal winger Theo Walcott this month.

The Toffees are keen to bring the England international to Goodison Park before the transfer window slams shut on January 31, and manager Sam Allardyce confirmed in his pre-match press conference on Friday that the club have opened negotiations over a deal for the 28-year-old.

Saints are also keen to re-sign him 12 years after he left for the Gunners, but the player’s reported £110,000-a-week wages and the fact that they are only above the relegation zone on goal difference could prove to be two big issues.

If the south coast outfit do miss out on Walcott they will be forced to look elsewhere for a wide player, and they may well choose to take another look at Pione Sisto, who The Mirror reported they wanted to sign from Danish side Midtjylland in 2016.

The Denmark international ended up joining La Liga outfit Celta Vigo instead, but Mauricio Pellegrino could be making a shrewd move by reigniting the club’s previous interest in the 22-year-old, who is rated at €15m (approximately £13.3m) according to Transfermarkt.

Here are three reasons Southampton must forget Walcott and reignite their interest in Sisto…

Goals and assists

Southampton boss Pellegrino will be looking for goals and assists from a new winger given that his team has only scored 21 goals in 22 Premier League matches this season, and there is no doubt that Sisto would be able to deliver.

The 22-year-old has more assists (nine) than any other player in La Liga this season in 18 Spanish top flight appearances for Celta Vigo, while he has also chipped in with two goals.

Sisto impressed for Midtjylland previously too with 31 goals and 11 assists in 112 games, while he caused the Republic of Ireland all sorts of problems with his speed, strength and technical ability as Denmark thrashed them 5-1 in their World Cup play-off.

Pace

You know that you’re going to get pace if you’ve got Theo Walcott in your side, and if Saints can’t sign him then they won’t be losing out on that acceleration if they buy Sisto instead.

The 22-year-old is super quick and can play on either flank, and there is no doubt that his direct style would prove to be a problem for opposition Premier League defenders.

According to WhoScored.com, the Denmark international has successfully completed 32 of the 68 dribbles he has attempted in 18 La Liga appearances this season, and like Sadio Mane often did for Saints, he would bring an unpredictability factor on the pitch for the south coast outfit.

Potential

While Walcott is a proven player at this level, his age and his reported wage demands mean that he isn’t the typical Southampton signing.

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The south coast outfit have tended to sign younger players that are out of favour at other clubs, before giving them a platform to play and improve to improve their value.

Signing Sisto, who celebrates his 23rd birthday next month, for a fee in the region of £13m would certainly be more like it for Saints, and the winger has the potential to go and become a big player for them both now and in the future.

Do you agree, Saints fans? Let us know below.

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Kerala beat Karnataka comfortably by ten wickets in their Ranji TrophySouth Zone clash at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi to complete only a secondvictory against their northern neighbours in 46 encounters in thecompetition. Set a princely target of five runs in the fourth innings,Kerala’s win came in slightly bizarre fashion. Vijay Bharadwaj bowled ano-ball, which went for four byes, to finish with the unusual figures of0.0-0-1-0.Earlier Karnataka, resuming at 31/4, folded up for 133. Overnight batsmen,Bharadwaj (32) and AR Mahesh (31) waged a grim battle in the first sessionbut both were out in successive overs at the stroke of lunch to leave thevisitors at 93/6. Little resistance was offered by the tail with theexception of Dodda Ganesh who hung around for an hour and a quarter toproduce 22. The curtain came down when skipper Venkatesh Prasad knocked offspinner Ramprakash into Tinu Yohannan at cover, Karnataka labouring for79.2 overs to make 133. Left arm spinner Sreekumar Nair and leg spinner MSuresh Kumar finished with three wickets apiece.Kerala’s only other victory over Karnataka – by six wickets – came at theGovernment Victoria College Ground, Palakkad on 28-31 December 1996.CricInfo’s zealous scorer, Sudhir Aly also informs us that umpire Sanjeeva Raoofficiated in both Kerala triumphs. The result queers the pitch in the zonalstandings, lifting Kerala to 18 points from four games, ahead ofKarnataka’s 16.

	Haroon Lorgat says it’s important Twenty20 is used to help cricket, but that Tests remain the major format © Getty Images

Haroon Lorgat, the incoming ICC chief executive, has said it is vital for Test cricket to remain the No. 1 format. The explosion of Twenty20, especially the advent of the IPL, has raised questions about the future of five-day cricket with the fear that some players may end their international careers early to take up lucrative deals such as those offered by the IPL.Lorgat believes the sudden surge of Twenty20 might need to plateau so that a balance is maintained between all the different formats, although he is still confident it can help boost the game overall. “I sat in on the ICC cricket committee meeting this month and they were very clear that Test cricket should remain the pinnacle of the game and I agree,” Lorgat told Reuters. “It’s a form of the game we can use as a wonderful opportunity to grow cricket globally, though we will have to manage the load that Twenty20 takes on against Test and 50-over cricket.”We are seeing a lot of Twenty20 now because the IPL is going on, but like most things that are new, you see an explosion of interest at first and then things settle down. We might be having too much of it at first but I hope going forward we can keep a sensible balance between Twenty20 and the other formats.”Lorgat will take up his position at the annual conference – which has been moved from London to Dubai – in July at a time when the ICC’s image is under fire because of events which cumulated in the early departure of Malcolm Speed last month.”I would always prefer to see the game itself receive the maximum exposure in the news rather than the off the field issues that we have read about,” Lorgat said. “They are not the kind of stories you want reported about the ICC.”But with me soon to start, and with David Morgan beginning his term as president at the same time, I hope we will be given the opportunity to project the game itself into the newspapers and improve the current image.”

South Africa wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock could miss the limited-over games at home against New Zealand in August after being dropped from the team for the second Test against Bangladesh in Mirpur. De Kock will be sent to India with the A team, Test captain Hashim Amla said on Thursday, in the hope that he will find form before the South Africa’s tour there beginning in late September.Former selector Hugh Page told ESPNcricinfo he had no doubt that de Kock possessed the “talent and the ability to recover,” and that his slump was healthy for creating competition for the wicketkeeper’s spot.After tearing ligaments in his ankle last December, de Kock was rushed back into the side for the 2015 World Cup but has scored just one half-century in 14 innings, and none on the ongoing tour of Bangladesh. His dwindling confidence as a batsman and indecision outside off stump forced the selectors’ hand and Dane Vilas replaced de Kock in the Mirpur Test. Amla steered away from saying de Kock had to work his way back but revealed that he would be headed to India with South Africa A.South Africa A are playing India A and Australia A in a triangular series, which starts early next week, and then two unofficial Tests against India A that clash with New Zealand’s tour of South Africa. Should de Kock go to India, South Africa will be without an opening batsman and a wicketkeeper in the shorter formats against New Zealand.AB de Villiers is set to return from paternity leave and could take over as wicketkeeper, though that may increase the burden on him as captain in ODIs. Vilas has played one T20 for South Africa and could be used, but that would require a shuffling of the batting order because he does not open. A ready-made solution would be for South Africa to go back to 36-year old Morne van Wyk, who could fill the opening berth and keep wicket, but they may see that as a regressive step. They may convince de Villiers to keep wicket temporarily and give Reeza Hendricks, who is part of the Test squad, an opportunity in the formats where he has done well at domestic level.

ScorecardFile photo: Ambati Rayudu struck a rapid fifty to push India A into the lead•Getty Images

A string of fifties, and a particularly brisk one late in the day from captain Ambati Rayudu, has pushed India A into the lead at stumps on the second day of the second unofficial Test in Wayanad. South Africa A have fallen behind despite offspinner Dane Piedt’s four wickets. With the series still in the balance at 0-0, India A have four wickets including wicketkeeper-batsman Ankush Bains to work on the 82-run advantage come the third day.Much of the hosts’ good work with the bat came from the top order, with Abhinav Mukund and Jiwanjot Singh striking half-centuries in an opening stand of 96. Jiwanjot, in his first first-class fifty since January, struck seven fours while Mukund extended his good run – it was his third fifty-plus score in four unofficial Tests against Australia A and South Africa A.The visitors needed a lift and Piedt provided that, taking three wickets for 56 runs. Mukund was trapped lbw for 72, B Aparajith’s patience ran out for 34 and Sheldon Jackson was bowled for 25 as India A’s one-way traffic was threatened. The other success for South Africa A was Lonwabo Tsotsobe taking his 200th first-class wicket, as he picked up 2 for 38.But India A captain Rayudu helped himself to a breezy 81-ball 71 which included eight fours and three sixes and ensured South Africa A did not gather momentum. He looked set to take control of the match too, but Piedt fought back again when he had Rayudu caught by Bavuma eight overs before stumps.Bains, who had been Rayudu’s partner in a 56-run stand for the sixth wicket, took India A to stumps and will look to rally the tail around him tomorrow.

ScorecardAndrew Gale has kept Yorkshire businesslike after the Championship has been won•Getty Images

For much of this game Sussex’s cricketers may have thought that Hampshire rather resembled Charles II in that they were taking an unconscionable time a-dying. Their insurance as they fought for parity against a powerful Yorkshire team at Headingley was that their rivals seemed to be finding it even more difficult to overcome Nottinghamshire. And they may have kept in the forefront of their minds the simple truth that if Hampshire did not win that match at Trent Bridge, they were relegated.Then, at just after three o’clock on the penultimate day of the season, those delicate equations began to change. As Nottinghamshire’s second-innings wickets fell to the pace of Fidel Edwards at Trent Bridge, Sussex surely realised that they may have a great deal of serious batting to do on the final day, albeit that they need only a draw to avoid relegation.On a day when 19 overs were lost to prolonged midday showers, Yorkshire extended their overnight 58-run lead beyond 300 and Andrew Gale could contemplate the possibility of his side achieving an eleventh County Championship victory. This would establish a new record for the 16-match format and it would make a fitting end to a season when honours and compliments have been lavished on Gale’s fine team like Christmas presents on a spoilt child.Nottinghamshire had runners-up prize money to play for but the attraction of mere lucre did not appear sufficient incentive for Chris Read’s players as they left Hampshire needing 200 to win and seemed to accommodate their opponents’ rapid progress towards that goal.None of this can have soothed Sussex’s players but they still battled manfully both to contain and to dismiss Yorkshire and by close of play they had succeeded to the extent that the home side were 298 for 9, a lead of 301 with a little power to add on the final morning of the season.Ed Joyce’s bowlers offered few free gifts on the third day of this game but the pitch had eased rather. They were also met with stern resistance from most of Yorkshire’s batsmen, but particularly from Gale, whose innings of 67 off 131 balls took him past a thousand County Championship runs for the season.Gale is a skilled mechanic of a batsman: he knows the tucks and drives that work for him and he does not worry about the shots he cannot play, the acceleration he does not possess. His innings currently suggests a measure of permanence, so it was almost a surprise when he fell into the trap set by Joyce and clipped Chris Liddle to Chris Jordan at leg gully just after tea.Sussex’s piece of rather smart cricket ended a 168-minute innings which had begun 15 minutes into the morning session after Gary Ballance had bottom-edged a ball from Steve Magoffin on to his stumps when playing a cramped and rather ugly cut. Eleven overs later Adam Lyth was dismissed in similar fashion for 39 by Lewis Hatchett and Jonny Bairstow strode out to join his skipper with the score on 123 for 3.The pair added 67 either side of the rain break and their 79-minute stand afforded one the opportunity to compare the styles of the two batsmen who have scored over a thousand Division One runs for Yorkshire in 2015.Gale, as has been suggested, is a trifle functional but mightily effective. Bairstow has developed into a batsman of glittering quality this season and one does not need to support England to hope that he will soon make a Test hundred. At Headingley, Chester-le-Street, Edgbaston and Scarborough, runs have flamed from his bat, their rapid acquisition helped by a more refined defence.Bairstow is now rarely bowled but he frequently demoralises bowlers. He has had a quiet match against Sussex – he was leg before to Jordan for a mere 36 on Thursday afternoon – but he still ends 2015 with a total of 1108 Championship runs in 12 completed innings at an average of 92.33. For many spectators, his batting has made the summer special, a coat-hook of memory by which it can be recalled.Bairstow was out just as wickets were falling in Nottingham and his departure was soon followed by those of both Leaning, a fine player who has had an indifferent couple of months, and Gale. The tension increased as the consequences of failure for Sussex became even more apparent. Had Hampshire lost, it did not matter how Sussex performed. Now it seemed certain that it was going to matter a very great deal.Gradually Adil Rashid, who made 21, and Tim Bresnan, who was unbeaten on 50 at the close, increased Yorkshire’s lead.The contest will be rejoined on the final morning of the season. The weather forecast is good and Sussex’s batsman will have to defy the best attack in the land. The prize on offer will not be a golden goblet but the quite invisible reward of mere survival. But should Ed Joyce’s players succeed in their goal, they may celebrate as if the pennant itself had returned to Hove and its sea-scented air.

ScorecardFile Photo – Manish Pandey struck 13 fours and a six for his 163-ball 104•PTI

Manish Pandey’s 16th first-class hundred underpinned Karnataka’s batting dominance before a brace of late strikes from left-arm seamer Ravi Thakur helped Vidarbha gain a slight edge on the opening day. Karnataka would need their lower order to rally around CM Gautam for them to post a big total on the second day, after they lost their sixth wicket off the penultimate ball of the day. Shreyas Gopal played a forceful cut off offspinner Akshay Wakhare, but it was caught smartly by a diving Faiz Fazal at short gully.At 266 for 3, with Pandey and Karun Nair having added 148 runs, the defending champions were strongly placed to push for their second consecutive 500-plus total. But Thakur struck with the last ball of his second over in his return spell by trapping Nair lbw. Then, in the first ball of his next over, he snuck one past Pandey’s attempted drive to find the stumps.Up to that point, it had largely been a struggle for Vidarbha after their captain S Badrinath elected to field. They had sensed an opening after Robin Uthappa was dismissed lbw by Shrikanth Wagh, but Pandey and Nair had thwarted such notions by finding the middle ground between being overly aggressive and retreating into a shell. To make matters worse for Vidarbha, Badrinath hurt himself after leaping up to catch Pandey’s lofted on drive. While he could only get his fingertips to the ball, he landed heavily on his knee and had to be escorted off the field, and Wasim Jaffer stood in as captain.Pandey, in the meanwhile, had begun to accumulate his runs with a combination of late dabs and forceful drives on either side. Nair, on the other hand, got his striking fix by carting Wakhare down the ground. The Vidarbha attack, too, had an anodyne sameness to it, with an endless dose of seam bowling being administered; it wasn’t until the 29th over that spin was introduced.As Pandey and Nair got to their fifties, and the ball became softer, they whipped it around and collected singles and twos before unleashing a sudden explosion of big shots.In the morning, Karnataka had started cautiously, even a touch nervously, with the opening bowlers, particularly Swapnil Bandiwar, getting the ball to bounce from just short of a length. Openers Uthappa and KL Rahul were denied much width – Karnataka opened their account only at the end of the third over – and had to remain content watching the ball ping into the wicketkeeper’s gloves.Rahul, returning from a quadriceps injury and looking to gain some match practice ahead of the South Africa Test series, even survived a close lbw shout in the second over when Bandiwar rapped him on the back leg. It was Uthappa who first turned on the ignition switch by driving Bandiwar on either side of the wicket for a pair of sweetly-timed boundaries.Rahul seemed uncomfortable every time he was bounced, getting into awkward positions while attempting the pull. It was to one such stroke he eventually perished to, off medium-pacer Fazal’s bowling, as the 49-run opening partnership came to an end. R Samarth fell just before lunch after he scooped up a drive straight to Badrinath at mid-off. Uthappa looked good for more than his 58 before Wagh cut his innings short a little while after lunch.

Australia will risk the fitness of Josh Hazlewood rather than recalling Peter Siddle in a calculated gamble to seal the Trans-Tasman series at the WACA Ground, before it reaches the experimental day/night match to follow in Adelaide.The captain Steven Smith conceded on match eve that Hazlewood’s bowling workload had been high enough for the selectors to consider withdrawing him from a Perth Test set to be played in typically scorching temperatures. That move would have reduced Hazlewood’s chances of injury and also allowed Siddle to bowl on a venue where he has enjoyed considerable success.However it has been decided instead to keep Hazlewood in the team following his useful contribution to the opening victory at the Gabba, a decision made in large part due to his strong record when playing ODIs for Australia at the ground. While yet to play a Test in Perth, Hazlewood’s record of 10 wickets at 11.9 in four limited-overs matches played a large part in swaying the selector on duty Rod Marsh and coach Darren Lehmann.”It was talked about,” Smith said. “Josh’s loads are quite high at the moment – he’s bowled quite a lot over the past month or two – so it was definitely spoken about. But we think he’s going to do a great job out here in Perth. He bowled really well last time he was here, against the South Africans in the one-dayers, so hopefully he can do a good job for us out here this Test match.”We’ll see how we’re going [after that]. There’s a reasonable gap between this Test and the next one. Obviously a six-Test summer as well so there’s a lot of cricket. We’ll wait and see how he pulls up after this Test match. [Siddle] was talked about. He’s bowling really well at the moment. But we won the last Test match with this line-up, and we’re going in with the same one.”Hazlewood’s height is expected to make him a major threat to New Zealand’s top order, who must adjust once more to a fast and bouncy pitch after Brisbane gave them some impression of what the WACA would be like. Smith agreed it was to Australia’s considerable advantage that no member of the New Zealand side has played a Test in Perth – the last meeting between these two countries in the West was as far back as 2001.”I guess that probably helps us a little bit, I think it’s a place that takes a little bit of getting used to,” Smith said. “I think as a batsman it takes a little bit longer to get in. I guess probably at a lot of grounds around the world it’s 20 or 30 balls to get in, I reckon here it’s probably more 40 or 50 to feel like you’re in. Once you get in it’s one of the best places in the world to bat. It’s nice to know that some of their players haven’t played here and we’ve got a lot of experience here.”While understandably happy with the way the Australian top order batting functioned at the Gabba, Smith has addressed his team on two areas that he felt were not up to standard last week. These were the home side’s catching, which gave up four chances across the two New Zealand innings, and also bowling that was lacking in consistency at times, particularly against the excellent Kane Williamson.”We set ourselves really high standards in the field and we let ourselves down a little bit in that department,” Smith said. “So that’s something we’re going to be working on. This is one of the best places in the world to field in the slips – you get a lot of time to see the ball because you’re generally quite deep, so hopefully we can hold our catches this match.”And with our bowling, I’ve sort of addressed that – our lengths were a little bit too short with the new ball in Brisbane. The guys found it quite hard from both ends because the wickets was a bit more raised than it normally is, so guys were finding it hard to find their rhythm. I don’t think they’ll have that problem out here so hopefully they can get their lengths right from ball one.”Australia have chosen to rest their players following this match rather than offering them additional practice against the pink ball to be used in Adelaide. By contrast, New Zealand’s squad will take part in a day/night warm-up fixture at the WACA against a WA Invitational XI to prepare them for the third Test. Smith and Australia are hoping it will not be billed as the series decider.

Nottinghamshire will need to bat well on the third day if they are to avoid the follow-on but on a track condusive to batting they have advanced to 45-1 from 24 overs without too many problems, still 460 behind.On a rain-shortened second day Essex advanced their first innings to 505-9 before skipper Ronnie Irani called a halt.Friday’s 3rd wicket stand of 248 between Paul Grayson and Stuart Law had laid the foundation for a big total but after a delayed start Notts fought their way back into the contest by taking three quick wickets, including that of Law, who was eventually dismissed for 165.Only 5 overs were possible during the afternoon session and it was something of a surprise when Irani chose to bat on at the resumption after tea with his side on 432-7.Some bright hitting from Danny Law and Ashley Cowan lifted Essex past 450 but then came a moment to savour for Stephen Randall. The 20 year old off-spinner, playing in his fourth first class match, picked up his first senior wicket as Cowan hit across the line and was palpably given out leg before wicket.At the other end ‘AJ’ Harris continued to toil and deservedly picked up his 5th wicket when Mark Ilott clipped just behind square and Guy Welton took a comfortable catch. That brought last man peter Such to the wicket, playing against the county where he began his career. Before Such had faced a ball Danny Law had lifted Randall on to the top tier of the Radcliffe Road Stand, a huge hit. He then turned his next ball to leg to bring up his 50, having faced 95 deliveries. Randall’s woe continued when Such skied his first ball and Welton, at full stretch, saw the ball pop free as he hit the turf.Law hit Randall for two more sixes in an over which yielded 18 and took Essex past the 500 mark. Irani then called the innings to a halt with Danny Law unbeaten on 68 and Harris taking the bowling honours for Notts with 5-139.In reply Darren Bicknell and Guy Welton negotiated the opening hour of their innings without too many alarms but when Irani replaced Ilott at the Radcliffe Road end to begin his second spell he had immediate success. Welton, who’d made 13, edged the ball low to first slip where the 6’4″ Ashley Cowan took a good catch.Jason Gallian joined Bicknell and they ensured that Notts reached the close without any further loss – Bicknell ending the day on 29 not out.