Suffolk had a difficult day in the field on day one of their top-of-the-table clash with Lincolnshire in the Minor Counties Championship, held at Ipswich School today.

Lincolnshire topped the Eastern Division table by just one point before the fifth of six rounds of matches, Suffolk a mere point adrift of the pace-setters in third, level on points with Staffordshire.

Having won the toss and elected to field first, the visitors piled on the runs, reaching 339 for five off their 90 overs against some controlled bowling.

In reply, Suffolk struggled to 46 for two, losing both their openers, Martyn Cull (4) and captain Adam Mansfield (10), before the close.

Bilal Shafayat was the star of Lincolnshire’s first innings, scoring a century, while both Michael Comber and Ollie Bocking took a couple of wickets for the hosts.

Comber dismissed both openers, having Joseph Kendall caught by Jack Beaumont for 17, with the score on 29, and fellow opener Jack Timby (37) had added 45 for the second wicket with Louis Kimber before he was caught behind by Adam Mansfield, again off Comber.

Kimber had reached a patient 46 off 103 balls when he was also by Mansfield, this time off former Ipswich School student Bocking, to leave Lincolnshire on 123 for three.

A further 57 runs were added for the fourth wicket when spinner Beaumont bowled Adam Tillcock for 28, but that merely paved the way for Shafayat and Daniel Freeman to share a big fifth wicket stand worth 126.

Shafayat had made 134, with 16 fours and a six, when he was caught by Mansfield off Bocking, while Freeman finished undefeated on 53.