The loss of three quick wickets followed by a break for bad weather brought a downturn in Yorkshire Phoenix's fortunes at Headingley yesterday when they lost to Warwickshire Bears by 14 runs under the Duckworth-Lewis system for calculating rain affected matches.

It left Yorkshire still to win a competitive game of any sort at Headingley this season and increased the pressures which are building up on the beleaguered club.

Chasing Warwickshire's 187, Yorkshire were 88 for five when rain took five overs out of the game and left them with a revised target of 177 but the task proved beyond them and they closed on 162 for nine, despite a late rallying stand between Simon Katich and Tim Bresnan.

Yorkshire's innings got off to the worst possible start with Craig White snicking the fifth delivery from South Africa's captain Shaun Pollock to debutant wicket-keeper Ian Clifford before pinch-hitter Chris Silverwood had a swing at Pollock and dragged the ball into his stumps.

The situation would have been even more serious had Matthew Wood been caught behind off Neil Carter before he also had scored but Clifford put down an easy chance and Wood made good his escape with some punishing blows during a 70 stand in 16 overs with Anthony McGrath.

The third wicket pair found the going much easier when Pollock was rested and replaced by Mohammad Sheikh who was hit for 14 in his first over, Wood finding the boundary with two cracking cover drives from consecutive deliveries.

McGrath lifted a ball from Neil Smith expertly over mid-wicket for four but the return of Pollock at 84 for two dramatically altered Yorkshire's fortunes although McGrath had only himself to blame for his dismissal when he pushed the all-rounder into the covers and set off for a quick single to Trevor Penney who hurled down the stumps with the batsman still well short of his crease.

Wood was lbw to Pollock's next ball for 42 off 53 deliveries with five fours and immediately before the break for rain Michael Lumb tamely drove Dougie Brown to Carter at mid-on.

On the resumption, Yorkshire lost three quick wickets as they stumbled to 111 for eight but Katich and Bresnan batted with such determination that Warwickshire became worried when 18 were required from the last two overs.

Singles came off Smith's first two deliveries but Bresnan was then given out lbw aiming to leg and Carter bowled such a tight final over that Katich could only manage a single off the last ball, leaving him on 39, his best score so far for Yorkshire.

Winning the toss, Warwickshire never really came to terms with an awkward pitch and most of their batsmen got into the teens without progressing any further.

Brown top-scored with 37 and he was ninth out to a splendid catch on the mid-wicket boundary by Katich which stopped a certain six runs.

Yorkshire's fielding was better than for some time and the bowlers kept it reasonably tight, Chris Silverwood, Sidebottom, Richard Dawson and White each claiming two wickets.

Meanwhile, Yorkshire's cricket committee will discuss the club's growing on-the-field crisis when they meet at Headingley tomorrow.

Although the meeting has been scheduled for some while, chairman Bob Platt and his worried colleagues intend to hold an inquest into the plummeting fortunes of the County Champions.

Chief coach Wayne Clark will be asked what steps are in hand to improve the situation.

The general feeling within the club that action must be taken soon to halt the slide grew even on stronger on Saturday when Yorkshire crashed to Sussex by an innings and 94 runs at Headingley.

The embarrassing defeat plunged Yorkshire to the bottom of the Division One table and left a gap of 12.5 points between themselves and Warwickshire with whom they swapped places.

Yorkshire are now the only side in the Division without a win and each of the three teams above them enjoy a game in hand.

Updated: 09:38 Monday, June 17, 2002