A hat-trick for Australia new ball seamer Michael Neser contributed to another difficult day for Yorkshire as Glamorgan seized control of the LV= Insurance County Championship match after two days at Headingley.
Neser claimed four wickets in the hour before lunch, with prodigious swing evident as Yorkshire fell from 62-5 to 106 all out in their first-innings reply to 245.
The Queenslander, 33, swung one back into the pads of Dawid Malan and trapped him lbw before bowling right-handed pair George Hill and Dom Bess and bowling them as they shouldered arms with one that nipped back and another which swung in.
Fresh from being left out of Australia’s touring party for next month’s World Test Championship final against India and the first two Ashes Tests, Neser claimed Glamorgan’s ninth Championship hat-trick and went on to record career best figures of 7-32 from 11 overs.
The Welshmen started their second innings an over before lunch, leading by 139, and they moved to 57-2 from 20.3 overs at close. There was no play possible beyond 3.35pm.
Play did not start until noon following overnight and morning rain, but despite a bright start from Malan and and Jonny Bairstow, Yorkshire were quickly in real strife.
First, Neser swung one back into left-hander Malan and trapped him lbw for 25 with the fourth ball of the 28th over – 90-6.
The Queenslander then nipped one back and swung the other into the right-handed pair of Hill and Bess, who were both bowled.
The delivery to Bess was particularly eye-catching given how far the ball swung from outside off-stump. And Yorkshire were 90-8 in the 28th.
With Neser having taken three late on day one, the Hill delivery marked his five-for. But he wasn’t done there.
Jordan Thompson later edged behind to give him a seventh wicket – 102-9 in the 30th – before Ben Coad was run out with a direct hit at the striker’s end from cover as Bairstow tried to pinch a quick single and retain strike.
That wrapped up the innings, with Bairstow unbeaten on 20.
Bairstow’s last Championship appearance for Yorkshire came against Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford in July 2018 when he was part of the famous hat-trick taken by Jordan Clark, also including the scalps of Joe Root and Kane Williamson.
Yorkshire fought back to win that game.
They have a mountainous task ahead of them if they are to do the same this weekend.
Glamorgan made steady progress in their second innings.
And, despite losing openers Andrew Salter and David Lloyd, they will be delighted with their position at the halfway stage of the contest.
Thompson trapped Salter lbw before Edwards had Lloyd, for 33, caught low down at backward point by sub fielder Jonny Tattersall.
The Lloyd wicket proved to be the last of the day, with the rain sweeping in immediately afterwards – just after 3.30pm.
A planned restart at 4.45pm was then shelved due to more rain, with only 29.3 overs bowled in the day.
