The biggest cheer from a 4,000 crowd at Scarborough yesterday for Yorkshire Phoenix's totesport League defeat to Derbyshire Phantoms came when England won the fourth Ashes Test at Trent Bridge.

Otherwise there was little for the home fans to celebrate as Yorkshire went down by five wickets with 15 balls remaining to end all hopes of promotion.

After winning their first three games, Yorkshire have not now beaten a county side in the competition since overcoming Sussex Sharks at Headingley on May 1 and they are lacking flair and sparkle in this brand of cricket.

Winning the toss, Yorkshire were forced to go into the game without their Australian all-rounder Ian Harvey, whose small son was rushed to hospital the previous day after swallowing a small ball and almost choking.

Batting first, they could only manage a modest 219 for eight and although they had Derbyshire on 119 for five at one stage they could not part Graeme Welch and Ant Botha who added an unbroken 102 in 17 overs.

Welch finished with 58 from 68 deliveries with six fours and a six and Botha made his best one-day for his county of 56 from 60 balls with seven fours and a six.

Off-spinner Richard Dawson was the pick of the bowlers with two for 29 from his nine overs but Derbyshire were under little pressure as they neared their target, Welch whipping Anthony McGrath for a flat six over square leg seconds before England's triumph.

Although Michael Lumb is out of favour in Championship cricket, he continues to be Yorkshire's most successful batsman in this competition and he weighed in with a season's best 69 off 77 balls with nine fours and a six.

Lumb leads the way with 468 Totesport League runs and his fifth half-century of the season helped Yorkshire recover from a shaky start in which they lost openers Phil Jaques and Craig White to Welch who found himself bowling into a gale force wind.

Both got out to lazy shots, Jaques cutting straight to Tom Lungley at point and White driving a swinging delivery to Travis Friend at mid-off.

McGrath struck his first ball from Welch through mid-on for four but it was Lumb who dominated their 85 stand for the third wicket and he raised the 50 by picking up a ball from Welch and slamming it high over mid-wicket and into a nearby garden.

Welch and his new ball partner Mo Sheikh each bowled their nine overs off the reel and soon after Lumb had reached his half-century he lost McGrath who flicked Jon Moss to mid-wicket and was out for 29.

Lumb became the second victim for Moss, who returned career-best figures of four for 28, but Matthew Wood briefly livened things up by sweeping Ant Botha for six and then pulling Lungley into the crowd.

A useful stand developed between Wood and Joe Sayers, who put on 66 together in 12 overs before Wood, hitting out at Lungley, was caught on the mid-wicket boundary by Moss for 31, and former Yorkshire off-spinner Andy Gray turned a ball in the next over to have Sayers caught behind for a well-assembled 41.

After the interval, the teams formed a guard-of-honour for umpire, David Shepherd, who retires at the end of the season, and Yorkshire chairman, Robin Smith, presented him with a maritime clock with the Yorkshire Rose on it.