Former Yorkshire paceman, Mark Robinson, the man with the worst batting reputation in the country, blocked out a tense final over at Arundel on Saturday to deny his native county their first Championship win of the season.

Sussex wicketkeeper-batsman Tim Prior and last man Robinson held on for 26 balls together as Yorkshire pulled out all the stops in a futile bid to part the gallant pair and end the match.

After starting the season with five defeats and a draw, Yorkshire sensed at tea that a win was not far away, with Sussex 96-5 after declining to chase a 322 target in what turned out to be 79 overs.

But they came home knowing that the stalemate had only anchored them even more firmly to the bottom of the Division One table.

Yorkshire are 17.5 points behind Somerset, who have a game in hand, as do the division's two other strugglers, Lancashire and Warwickshire.

It seemed as if things would finally go Yorkshire's way when fielders crowded the bat with four overs remaining and Craig White hurled himself to the ground at silly point to cling on to a catch from Billy Taylor off Andy Gray to make it 206-9.

Hull-born Robinson, however, kept out five deliveries when the impressive Prior was unable to shield him, but after the statutory 16 overs had been bowled in the final hour there was enough time left for Yorkshire to squeeze in one extra over.

With Robinson at the striker's end, skipper Darren Lehmann decided the best way of getting rid of the 'rabbit' was to replace spin with pace, so he took off Gray and brought on White.

His second ball found the inside edge and missed leg stump by a couple of inches. Robinson pushed forward defensively at the next two deliveries before being beaten over the stumps.

White had one ball left in which to dismiss Robinson but it sailed harmlessly down the legside.

"It was a great feeling to be able to hold out and bring us a draw and we feel well satisfied with the result after beating Yorkshire by an innings at Headingley and taking 11 points from this game," said Robinson.

"In a way, it made it easier for me with Yorkshiremen crowding the bat because I felt familiar with their comments and was able to give some back. I was a bit nervous but not half as bad as when I was waiting to go in to bat."

Yorkshire, starting the last day on 357-4 declared at 458-8 and in retrospect they might feel it would have been wiser to have called a halt earlier and given themselves more time to bowl out Sussex.

Chris Elstub dismissed opener Murray Goodwin with the fourth ball of the Sussex innings and with the first ball of his second spell Ryan Sidebottom beat Chris Adams and shattered his stumps.

In the same over, non-striker Richard Montgomerie was run out by Richard Dawson's direct hit.

Prior looked every inch an England prospect for his work behind the stumps and with the bat. His unbeaten 70 was his fourth consecutive Championship half-century, three of which have been off Yorkshire.

Updated: 12:26 Monday, July 01, 2002