Yorkshire Confined to Base Camp

After taking two of the four Sussex wickets to fall on a rain-shortened first day, Steven Patterson's work in this match is done. The 24-year-old seamer from Hull was nominated before the start as the player to be replaced when Tim Bresnan's drinks-carrying duties with the England one-day squad ended last night, but Yorkshire may now be regretting that decision.

Patterson, a maths graduate from Leeds University whose career can only go downhill after he was a member of the first team to play on the Gorak Shep glacier of Mount Everest last winter, had Mike Yardy caught behind in his opening spell, then induced a rare error from Murray Goodwin, who shouldered arms to an off-cutter.

"It's a bit strange knowing you're only playing for the day, but it's good to have made a contribution," he said. Moving on to the business of the Himalayas, he explained that he had been part of a party that climbed to 19,000ft, just beyond base camp, and "had a bit of a game with the Sherpas". They raised £40,000 for the Professional Cricketers' Association.

Despite Patterson's efforts this was a mostly unproductive day for Yorkshire, who began it in the relegation zone, two places and five points below Sussex. Anthony McGrath, captaining as Darren Gough took a breather, lost the toss and Sussex galloped to 106 for one at lunch.

Chris Nash took advantage of some loose deliveries and the out-ground's short boundaries to stroke nine fours in a 69-ball half-century, and Matt Prior's wicket keeping replacement Andrew Hodd joined him in a second-wicket partnership of 101.

Matthew Hoggard was the most expensive of Yorkshire's four seamers and also conceded a couple of comedy misfields at mid-on but he broke the stand with a leg-stump half-volley which Nash clipped to midwicket, where Michael Vaughan took a sharp two-handed catch above his head.

Both Goodwin and Chris Adams fell cheaply, with the Sussex captain now averaging just over 20 in his leanest-ever season and widely expected to move into coaching next summer either with Hampshire, who have already made a formal approach, or possibly Middlesex. But Hodd grafted to an unbeaten 66 before the rain rushed down the A64 from York to send a modest crowd back to their boarding houses. It does seem a bit bizarre to play cricket at the seaside in September, at the start of the new school term.