ENGLAND fast bowler Matthew Hoggard went into Yorkshire's Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road today needing just one more wicket to take his tally in first class cricket to 400 dismissals.

The paceman has so far claimed 143 wickets for England and 191 for Yorkshire with the remainder coming in other first class fixtures.

Hoggard was keen to reach the milestone in Yorkshire's current match because it is his last Championship appearance before teaming up with England for the two Tests against Bangladesh, followed by the one-day internationals and then the battle for the Ashes.

Understandably, Hoggard has wanted to build up gradually after all the hard work he did in South Africa last winter and in his three Championship outings with Yorkshire he has been steady rather than going at it like a bull in a china shop.

He has taken eight wickets at 38.37 runs apiece but it will be good for Yorkshire over the next few days if he can take some of the weight off the shoulders of South African import Deon Kruis, who in the two Championship victories at Headingley has grabbed 14 wickets.

Hoggard's England captain Michael Vaughan could also do with signing off from Yorkshire in the Championship by making a substantial contribution with the bat.

Vaughan managed only 12 against Northamptonshire last Saturday and did not get the chance to bat in the second innings, leaving him short of match practice.

With Leicestershire floundering near the bottom of the table with two defeats and a draw from their first three matches, Yorkshire have a wonderful opportunity to strengthen still further their promotion challenge.

They are fourth in the Second Division table but only 12.5 points adrift of leaders, Durham, who were meeting up with third-placed Lancashire today at Old Trafford.

Everything is pointing to a cracking encounter when Yorkshire take on Durham at Riverside next Friday when both sides will be without their Test players.

For the time being, however, Yorkshire were concentrating hard on their present task which was to continue their winning sequence at Grace Road where results have not been all that favourable in recent years.

Yorkshire have won only once in their last eight visits to Leicestershire. They have lost three times and four of the games have ended in draws.

The last time they were successful was in 2001 when they won by 168 runs and went on to clinch the Championship for the first time in 33 years.

Yorkshire (v Leicestershire): Wood, Jaques, McGrath, Vaughan, Harvey, White, Dawood, Dawson, Bresnan, Hoggard, Kruis.

Updated: 11:43 Wednesday, May 11, 2005