JAMIE Haynes was on stand-by for a rare one-day selection for Lancashire in their latest MEN-sponsored floodlit National League match against Sussex Sharks at Old Trafford tonight.

Haynes was set to replace vice captain Warren Hegg, who suffered a groin injury off the first ball of Northants' second innings in the Championship match on Saturday.

Lancashire were playing for pride with any chance of getting out of the Second Division long since gone and a real danger that they could finish bottom of the heap, especially after they lost to Middlesex at Lords last Monday.

Sussex are also out of the promotion race in mid-table but have the most successful opening pair in England in Richard Montgomerie and Murray Goodwin and were aiming for revenge after being knocked out of the C&G Trophy at Old Trafford earlier this season.

Lancashire are still facing a nervous battle to avoid relegation to the Second Division of the Cricinfo Championship after Saturday's dull draw against Northants at Old Trafford.

It gave them a little more breathing space over Northants, who are now 23 points behind Lancashire, but they still have a game in hand, and more worryingly for Lancashire, so do Glamorgan, who are only 14 points behind and currently occupy the third relegation slot.

John Crawley and Joe Scuderi hit half centuries as Lancashire reached 243 for seven in their second innings before Crawley declared just before tea.

Crawley made 68 to follow his superb 280 in the first innings, and Scuderi added an unbeaten 61 to the 89 he scored last Wednesday, his third half century in eight Championship innings after such a long wait for the first.

Northants were left with an academic victory target of 349 to win in just over two hours, and had reached 13-1 when the match was abandoned soon after tea.

Crawley took the safe, sensible option of denying the visitors any chance of the win they needed to boost their fading hopes of survival. But he knows that Lancashire still have a lot of work to do.