After the euphoria of the previous day’s victory over Derbyshire, the Netherlands were given an object lesson in the realities of county cricket on Monday by a Northamptonshire side seemingly determined to reassert the distance between the upstart Associates and the fulltime county game.

It had all started so well for the Dutch, Mark Jonkman producing another outstanding opening burst after the Northants skipper, former South African Test allrounder Andrew Hall, had won the toss and elected to bat. Generating real pace and maintaining excellent line and length, Jonkman reduced the home side to 9 for two within the first four overs.

But that was, as it turned out, as far as it went for the Orange Lions, and once Jonkman had been smacked for two boundaries in his fourth over by opener
David Sales, the Northamptonshire batsmen gradually gained control. Supported by another former Protea in Nicky Boje, Sales continued to pierce the field at regular intervals, and these two put on 99 for the third wicket in less than 17 overs.

Only Michael Dighton, bowling a succession of slower deliveries, seemed able to stem the flow, and it was he who eventually secured the breakthrough, having Boje caught behind for 38 and then in his next over, removing Sales when he had made a fine 58-ball 62, with ten boundaries.

That made it 113 for four, but any hope of a fightback by the Dutch bowlers was quickly stifled by a hard-hitting innings from Robert White, whose 51 from 42 balls included four powerful sixes in a single Peter Borren over. He was eventually bowled by Pieter Seelaar, but despite more exemplary overs from Jonkman Northamptonshire managed 106 off the last twelve, reaching an imposing total of 238 for seven by the end with wicketkeeper David Murphy chiming in with a 20-delivery, not-out 31.

Jonkman claimed the wicket of James Middlebrook in the last over to finish with three for 34, but the rest of the Dutch attack – with the exception of Dighton – generally failed to impress.

The extent to which they had failed to exploit the conditions soon became clear, as the Netherlands’ top order was subjected to an opening onslaught of sustained hostility from James Brooks and Lee Daggett which by the tenth over had them reeling at 29 for five.

Producing steep and menacing bounce and extravagant lateral movement, both bowlers had the batsmen groping helplessly, and only Eric Szwarczynski seemed capable, however briefly, of finding an answer. But he, too, edged to Murphy off Daggett, whose opening six-over spell yielded him figures of four for 10.

Even Dighton, who had batted so well for his century on Sunday, was unable to settle, eventually departing for an eight-ball duck, and his fellow-Australian Tom Cooper was equally unable to score. And matters became even worse for the Dutch when David Wigley, replacing Daggett, removed Brad Kruger with his first delivery, a magnificent yorker.

Bas Zuiderent somehow managed to weather the storm, and when he was joined by Atse Buurman the pair began to take the attack to the Northants bowlers, answering fire with fire and hitting a series of boundaries. Buurman reached 17 before he was trapped in front by spinner Boje, and Zuiderent top-scored with a defiant 32.

The tail wagged for a time, and the Dutch had managed to post exactly half their opponents’ score by the time Jonkman was stumped off Boje to give the South African left-armer figures of three for 10 to go with Daggett’s four for 17.

The home side had, in truth, been in a different class on the day, and The Netherlands will have plenty to think about before they resume their CB40 campaign against Derbyshire in Schiedam on 30 July.