Tremain shines on debut to bring Northants back into the game at Kent

After being bowled out for just 117 in their first innings, the County were right up against it in their LV= Insurance Championship Division One clash as hosts Kent eased to 90 for one in reply.

But Australian pace bowler Tremain claimed the wicket of Daniel Bell-Drummond for 27 to spark a collapse as Kent stumbled to 222 all out, a modest lead of 105, with Tremain going on to claim five for 44 from 18 overs o his Northants debut.

He was superbly backed up by Jack White, who took four for 57, and with Northants closing on 47 for two in their second innings, just 58 runs behind, the match is still very much alive.

England man Zak Crawley's 91 was the standout innings from a Kent perspective, but Tremain ended his resistance as well as claiming the key wicket of Sam Billings, and he admitted they were sweet moments.

"I actually played with Zak at the Hobart Hurricanes, so there were two wickets I wanted to get today. One was Zak and one was Bilbo," said Tremain.

"I got both of them and I’ll let them know about it every time I see them from now on!

"I’ve actually really enjoyed seeing these guys again, I’ve played a lot of cricket with Sam Billings and got to know Zak quite well in the Big Bash.

"It’ll be great to catch up with them after the game, but while we’re in the field I’m going to do everything I can to ruin their day!

"It’s a nice ground, the slope on it makes everything really interesting, even with a flat ball or a flat wicket.

“Anything that basically brings the batsmen back into the game, the slope negates. There’s always something you can use, there’s always ways to take wickets when something like this is on offer.

“You can set up a really good game of cricket, there’s still enough of a threat there."

And on his first taste of English cricket, the New South Wales man said: “Weirdly enough I’ve wanted to play championship cricket since I was in High School.

"I had a coach who was an old school cricketer and he spoke about al these great things, so it was something I always wanted to do, but I’d never been able to get the right visa.

“I’m really excited and I actually ended up cramping up a bit in my calves from being a bit nervous.

"It’s first-class cricket, it’s tricky, difficult and it’s always going to be hard. Look at Kent’s batting line-up, there’s a lot of international cricket in there.

“I don’t think the pitch changed, but the overheads did and that made all the difference.”

Northants resume on Saturday morning with Hassan Azad (26no) and skipper Luke Procter (2no) at the crease, aiming to go past Kent's total and set their hosts a meaningful target.