Cox savours victory 'buzz'

Somerset all-rounder Keith Parsons finds the boundary

Somerset skipper Jamie Cox hailed a magnificent team effort after the Cider Boys claimed their first silverware for 18 years.

Click here for scorecard

After a summer in which Australia won the Ashes and the one-day NatWest Series, it was perhaps predictable that Tasmanian Cox would lift the C&G Trophy.

"It's such a thrill. I've been playing cricket now for 16 years and this is my first major trophy. I'm completely buzzing," he said.

Cox acknowledged the importance of an unbroken sixth wicket stand of 95 between Man of the Match Keith Parsons and Rob Turner.

"We started the day wanting a score of 250 plus. We felt runs on the board are always a good thing to have. Parsy and Rob Turner at the end got us past that 250 range, which turned out to be crucial."

He went on: "Right throughout the competition we've had heroes at every turn. It's rarely been the same bloke.

"If you go back to our first game, Mark Lathwell made a hundred. It was the only game he played in the tournament.

"Jason Kerr, Jamie Grove and Piran Holloway all particpated in that game as well and unfortunately didn't get another run in the competition. This is just as much for them as it is for us."

The victory made up for Somerset's 50-run defeat by Gloucestershire in the 1999 NatWest Trophy final, and earned the club a £53,000 winner's cheque.