JACK Simmons today backed Mike Atherton's bid for an England recall.

Atherton completed a career best 268 not out on the second day of the Championship game against Glamorgan at Blackpool, again showing no reaction to his back problems.

And Lancashire chairman Jack Simmons said: "It was as well as I've ever seen him play for us. It will give a lot of messages to the right people that he is back to his best."

Atherton batted exactly nine hours, faced 475 balls and stroked 41 fours to set new records for Stanley Park, and Lancashire against Glamorgan.

It was his first double century for Lancashire and only the second of his career, following an unbeaten 210 against an Australian XI in Hobart last winter.

He even looked on course for a treble but had to settle for the 10th highest Lancashire innings of all time with skipper John Crawley declaring soon after lunch. And then it was straighht out into the slips for Atherton, who has been on the field every ball of this game so far - and could stay there with Muttiah Muralitharan sending Glamorgan tumbling towards the follow-on.

Murali was even on course to match Atherton's historic performance as he took the first five Glamorgan wickets, halfway towards Bob Berry's effort at Stanley Park against Worcestershire in 1953 - the last Lancashire bowler to take all 10 in an innings.

But the Sri Lankan denied himself by catching Ismail Dawood at mid-on off the bowling of Chris Schofield late in the day.

Still, he resumed today with 42 wickets for Lancashire in his seventh innings, racing towards the fastest-ever 50 for the county.

And at 193-6, Glamorgan were still a daunting 214 short of saving the follow-on, despite a battling unbeaten 89 from opener Adrian Dale.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.