Sussex are on the verge of a second successive hammering by leaders Northamptonshire after an abysmal batting collapse at Eastbourne last night.

Chasing 228 to win, the county were in danger of recording their lowest- ever total when Darren Cousins took four wickets in 13 balls and Paul Taylor two in two to reduce them to 13-6 after just six overs.

A pitch on which 19 wickets had fallen on the first day had been marked "below average" by ECB pitches inspector Mike Denness before play.

But, if anything, it had lost some of it's venom as Jeff Cook had proved in making what will surely be a match-winning 116 in Northants' second innings 270.

The procession began in the first over when Toby Peirce chipped his third ball from Cousins straight to mid-wicket. Wasim Khan shouldered arms to the next delivery and was leg before with Sussex 1-2.

The sight of Cousins clearly sends Richard Montgomerie into a panic. When he only shuffled half-forward in his next over it was the third time in six days that he had fallen leg before to the medium-pacer.

That made the county 2-3 and when Tony Cottey's off bail was trimmed by Cousins in his next over, Sussex were reeling on 6-4.

There was then little to commend Robin Martin-Jenkins when he aimed a wild drive outside off stump at left-armer Taylor and wicketkeeper David Ripley was able to celebrate his 700th dismissal for Northamptonshire: 13-5.

Things got no better for Sussex. James Kirtley barely got forward to the next delivery and became the 12th leg before victim of the match and at 13-6 there was every danger that Sussex might eclipse the 19 all out they made against Notts in 1877.

Skipper Chris Adams and Umer Rashid took their side to the relative riches of 25-7 before Rashid was caught behind off a beautiful away swinger from Taylor and when Northants claimed the extra half-hour for the second time in a week against Sussex a two-day finish looked in prospect.

Adams found an unlikely ally in Nick Wilton with whom he added 20 in eight overs before bad light stopped play with three of the extra eight overs still remaining and Sussex 45-7, 183 short of victory.

One of Adams's first jobs when it's all over at some stage today will surely be to track down Michael Bevan and do whatever it takes to persuade the Australian to play in next week's match against Glamorgan at Colwyn Bay.

It has surprised few people that the county's two poorest batting performances this season have coincided with the left-hander's absence.

If Northants do go on to win they will look back on the contribution of one of their two big Australians as being decisive.

Skipper Matthew Hayden may have been the wicket most coveted by the Sussex attack, but it was 6ft 4in Sydney-born Jeff Cook who led their fightback with his second century of the season.

The 28-year-old left-hander made 116, sharing in important stands with Tony Penberthy, Graeme Swann and David Ripley before he was seventh out, bowled round his legs by Umer Rashid.

Cook rode his luck at times, but by the end he was driving sweetly through the covers off front foot and back, hitting 18 boundaries in 160 balls faced.

Sussex seemed to have done the hard work in the morning session when they reduced Northants to 65-4. Robert Rollins fenced at a ball from James Kirtley straight to third slip, Hayden was brilliantly taken at square leg by Peirce off a full-blooded pull and Robinson removed David Sales and Russell Warren with successive deliveries, both leg before when only half-forward.

Perhaps they expected a pitch which had already yielded 24 wickets to do the work for them, but the attack lost its discipline in the afternoon when the increasingly assured Cook organised some spirited resistance from the middle order.

Northants added 160 runs between lunch and tea in losing three wickets with Ripley, dropped at the wicket off Robinson when he had made eight, making an invaluable 39 before Lewry cleaned up the tail later on to finish with 4-57.