SUSSEX laid on bungee jumping under the Hove floodlights last night -- but Lancashire are heading for a crash landing in their defence of the National League title.

Lightning slumped to their fifth defeat in nine matches to leave them joint bottom of the First Division table with Kent. And they are now eight points adrift of Sussex, Yorkshire and Northants, needing to overtake at least two of them to avoid relegation.

The night had started so well for Lancashire in the Brighton drizzle as they reduced Sussex to 64-4. But Sussex were saved by the unlikely pairing of Bas Zuiderent, a young Dutchman filling in for Aussie dangerman Michael Bevan, and the former Kent and Cambridge University left hander Will House.

They put on 141 in 16 overs against some wayward Lancashire bowling. Glen Chapple was the worst culprit, conceding 62 from his eight overs, and Mark Chilton went for 12 in a single over on his return from a broken finger.

The only plus point for Lancashire was the return of Ian Austin, who had Sussex skipper Chris Adams caught by Andy Flintoff at slip with his third ball back after six weeks out with a calf injury.

Austin slipped straight back into the groove in an opening spell of 7-1-15-1, proving his fitness for Sunday's NatWest Trophy semi final at Gloucestershire.

Lancashire rested Sourav Ganguly's groin injury with the trip to Bristol in mind but it looked like they would win without him as Flintoff and Neil Fairbrother added 75 in 13 overs for the third wicket after the early loss of Chilton and John Crawley.

But they were both out for 41 in the space of four overs to leave Lancashire 100-4 needing 220 to win in a game reduced by rain to 41 overs per side after Sussex's total of 213-6 had been revised upwards under the Duckworth-Lewis rules.

They never looked like winning after that and ended 28 runs short as young Sussex paceman James Kirtley ripped out four wickets.

Lancashire are now running out of matches to pull out of trouble, but have another chance to put things right at Yorkshire tomorrow, again under floodlights. SUSSEX

C Adams c Flintoff b Austin...0

R Montgomerie c Hegg b Flintoff...19

U Rashid c Fairbrother b Chapple...13

P Cottey run out...7

B Zuiderent b Chapple...68

W House not out...80

R Martin-Jenkins run out...5

Extras...21

Total (6wkts)...213

Bowling: Austin 9-1-32-1; Chapple 8-0-62-2; Flintoff 8-1-37-1; Chilton 1-0-12-0; Yates 4-0-18-0; Schofield 6-0-29-0; Keedy 5-0-20-0.

LANCASHIRE

M Chilton lbw Kirtley...3

J Crawley c Montgomerie b Kirtley...5

A Flintoff c and b Rashid...41

N Fairbrother b Robinson...41

G Lloyd c Cottey b Martin-Jenkins...28

W Hegg b Martin-Jenkins...20

C Schofield c Adams b Taylor...15

I Auston b Kirtley...3

G Chapple not out...11

G Yates b Kirtley...3

G Keedy b Taylor...1

Extras...21

Total...192

Bowling: Martin-Jenkins 8-1-37-2; Kirtley 7-1-45-4; Robinson 9-0-33-1; Taylor 7.2-1-30-2; Rashid 8-0-34-1