Darren Lehmann has coached Northamptonshire to another key triumph in their burgeoning bid to earn promotion in the county championship while his boy Jake's best ever knock in England proved in vain for struggling Hampshire.   

The former Test star 'Boof' and the veteran son-of-a-gun have both enjoyed excellent seasons, with dad Darren now eyeing the prospect of a return to division one for his side after Northamptonshire's latest six-wicket victory over Worcestershire at Worcester on Thursday.  

Meanwhile, veteran batter Jake keeps proving a shining light in what's been a difficult season for relegation-doomed Hampshire, who are poised to plummet to yet another defeat on Friday against champions Nottinghamshire despite Lehmann's heroics.

The 34-year-old left-hander kept Notts' attack at bay for over six hours at Trent Bridge across Tuesday and Wednesday, knuckling down in Hampshire's first innings as wickets tumbled around him to finish unbeaten on 133, his best ever score in England.

His terrific 247-ball contribution, which featured 14 boundaries, ensured Hampshire were able to battle to 304 and get within 73 of the champions' first innings total.

Hampshire's hopes were raised further when they then bowled out Notts for just 104 second time around but once Lehmann got caught behind for just two as the visitors slumped while chasing a victory target of 178, their task looked hopeless and they ended the day tottering on 6-61.

Having shelved any lingering hopes of playing for Australia like Darren, Jake has been using his British passport to appear as a local player in the English game and has flourished.

His second-innings failure was a rare one in what's proved an excellent campaign in which he's compiled 942 championship runs at an average of 52.33. Only Nottinghamshire's Joe Clarke (1240) and Somerset's Tom Abell (974) have scored more runs than him in first division matches this season.

Lehmann senior's Northamptonshire have moved into second place and into a promotion spot in division two after their win which was carved out with the help of another fine display from Australian paceman Harry Conway.

It was Conway's three-wicket burst that wrecked Worcestershire's top-order on Wednesday and paved the way for the victory, as he ended up with match figures of 5-71.

Coach Lehmann is a big fan of the 33-year-old, affectionately having labelled Conway as a "mad badger", and he's delighted that Northants have secured his services through to the end of the 2028 season, with the Sydneysider having taken 39 championship wickets this summer.