YORKSHIRE opener Matthew Wood had Bradford-Leeds Universities' footsore bowlers on their knees with an unbeaten double century at Headingley yesterday but it was Chris Taylor's 150 in the first innings which was the more significant knock.

With Anthony McGrath absent from Yorkshire's first few matches because of his England involvement in the West Indies, Taylor needed a good score to nail down the No 3 spot in the opening Championship match against Essex next week.

He did not disappoint and he played his most flamboyant Yorkshire innings yet, packing several powerful drives into a versatile knock which lasted 209 balls and contained 19 fours and three sixes.

Taylor's runs also came when the plucky Universities' bowlers were at their freshest, making them far more significant than if they had been scored in the second innings when the attack had lost its zip.

"This is an important season for me and it was great to get started with a big score," said Taylor. "I have worked hard on bringing more aggression to my batting and I was very happy with the way things went."

Even so, Taylor took a dim view of his dismissal when he was run out as the bowler collided with him before he could make his crease as he attempted to complete a second run.

"The umpire said that the fielding side could call me back if they wanted but declined," said a disappointed Taylor.

"I would have loved to have gone on and made 200."

Updated: 10:23 Monday, April 12, 2004