Twenty four hours after being forced to put the Championship champagne on ice, Sussex responded with one of their best-ever National League wins.

Their victory was sweet revenge and its irony was not lost on the Sussex skipper as Lancashire were left sweating on the second division title.

"We got it the wrong way around," admitted Chris Adams after a sensational nine wickets win in front of a 6,000 Old Trafford crowd.

"We needed to win the Championship match and Lancashire needed to win this one.

"But it was important to put the Championship defeat behind us and it's a credit to the side that they came back like this and made Lancashire wait for their title party."

Lancashire had everything prepared - a big crowd, a hot afternoon and the trophy in the hands of ECB official Alan Fordham who had taken it up from Lord's.

But Sussex, smarting from that Championship setback, gatecrashed the celebrations with a magnificent all-round display.

It was a personal triumph for opener Richard Montgomerie who had squeezed out just 98 league runs this season only to come good with an unbeaten 66 as Sussex stormed home by nine wickets in the 19th over.

Sussex demolished the table-toppers for 125 in 41 overs after they had stumbled to 40-4 with Bill Taylor and Paul Hutchison getting some extra bounce.

Only a battling 43 from Mark Chilton saved the hosts as Mark Davis cleaned up with 4-14 from his nine overs.

Then Montgomerie linked up in a sizzling opening partnership of 121 off 100 balls with Murray Goodwin.

Montgomerie raced to his 50 off 36 balls with nine fours while Goodwin reached his half-century off 46 balls including seven fours and a six.

On the brink of a rare ten wickets win, Goodwin fell to a stunning return catch by leg-spinner Chris Schofield leaving Montgomerie to finish the job.

Sussex (4pts) beat Lancashire (0pts) by six wickets.