James Kirtley hailed a 'fantastic team performance' as Sussex maintained their encouraging start to the season with a comprehensive first Championship win of the summer on Saturday.

Kirtley and Jason Lewry, who both took four wickets, were undoubtedly the star performers as Nottinghamshire, chasing 371 to win, were bowled out for 208.

But Kirtley preferred to give credit to the supporting cast.

"It was a fantastic team performance," said Kirtley who has led the county to four wins out of five while he leads the team in the absence of Chris Adams.

"We have had 12 heavy sessions, but we've managed to maintain the pressure throughout. I really can't single anyone out in this game or over the last fortnight. We managed to maintain the momentum we built up during the Benson and Hedges Cup by doing the simple things well and keeping our discipline."

It's likely to be Kirtley's last taste of captaincy for a while. Tony Cottey or Richard Montgomerie will lead the side against Cambridge University at Fenner's this week while Kirtley puts his feet up.

Adams, meanwhile, has pencilled in Sunday's Norwich Union League game against Essex for his comeback after three weeks out with a broken thumb.

"I've enjoyed leading the side," he said. "Mentally I have expended a lot of energy because you basically live every ball, but I've enjoyed it. We have had some success and it won't be so much of a shock if I'm asked to do it again at some stage in the future."

The pitch was still ideal for batting when Notts began their second innings 45 minutes before lunch on Saturday after Sussex had scored 66 runs in an hour's batting before declaring on 298-8.

But they lost three wickets before the interval and Kirtley then claimed the crucial wicket of Greg Blewett with the first delivery after lunch, although the Australian clearly felt he hadn't gloved the ball on it's way through to wicketkeeper Matt Prior.

At 45-4 Nottinghamshire were on the slippery slope as Kirtley and Lewry consistently swung the ball, something that hadn't happened on the previous three days.

Lewry, who had a match haul of 9-165, said: "On the previous three days we had to change the ball every 25 overs or so because it was going out of shape. But we picked out a good one for the fourth innings, it stayed reasonably hard and swung quite a bit."

Only veteran Paul Johnson provided any resistance for Notts. He finished on 88 not out after taking 18 off one over from Mark Davis just before Sussex wrapped up victory in time to see Liverpool's dramatic FA Cup comeback against Arsenal.

Johnson quickly lost Kevin Pietersen and Chris Read after Blewett's departure, but Paul Franks hung around long enough to help put on 63 for the seventh wicket before Robin Martin-Jenkins, who had seen Johnson dropped twice and Franks once, got overdue reward for a hostile spell down the slope when he removed Franks and Gareth Clough in successive overs.

Lewry wrapped up the innings after tea, but not before Greg Smith, who had earlier taken 5-37 for match figures of 10-101, had blazed away merrily for eight overs to put on 52 for the last wicket.

Lewry ended the contest in spectacular style, uprooting the South African's middle stump with an inswinger of perfect length.

Scores: Sussex 404 and 298-8 (Yardy 68, Montgomerie 66, Smith 5-35), Nottinghamshire 332 and 208 (Lewry 4-65, Kirtley 4-50). Sussex (19pts) beat Notts (7) by 162 runs.