YORKSHIRE are considering an official complaint to Lord's over Saturday's Roses washout which could cost them the championship.

The game was abandoned in glorious sunshine because heavy overnight rain had leaked under the covers and left the crease at the Warwick Road end saturated.

Yorkshire captain David Byas was furious, and the club's chief executive Chris Hassell, formerly cricket secretary at Old Trafford, added today: "For this to happen at a Test ground is unforgivable.

"We will be in touch with Lord's and it might well lead to an official complaint."

Yorkshire will wait for the result of Lancashire's own inquiry and also study the match report of umpires Nigel Plews and Alan Whitehead, before making a decision.

But Lancashire groundsman Peter Marron has insisted: "My conscience is clear. We took all the precautions that we had taken previously but there was six hours of heavy continuous rain on Friday night.

"There is a hollow on this side of the square and the water has gathered and gone over the top of the wooden boards that we put on the tarpaulin covers." There seems little danger of Lancashire suffering a championship points penalty even though they were put on a suspended ten points sentence at the end of last season when the pitch for the game against Middlesex eas ruled unfit.

But it is the second time this year Lancashire have been forced to abandon play following the Sunday League game against Glamorgan in June, when Marren took responsibility after watering the pitch in midweek.

The Lancashire committee are expected to decide on their response at their meeting this week, when they will also be discussing the loss of chief executive John Bower and a new specialist's report on Wasim Akram's shoulder injury. Although Shane Warne says he wants to come to Lancashire, the county insist that Wasim remains their first choice.

It is also the annual contracts meeting but Jason Gallian has already left the club with committee man Jack Simmons claiming yesterday that he has been poached by another county, believed to be Middlesex.

Gallian was left out of the Sunday League match with Mike Atherton returning 24 hours after the press conference to reveal his decision to stay on as England captain. The game was reduced to ten over per side by more bad weather and Lancashire completed a convincing 31 run win to maintain their outside title chance.

Warren Hegg hit 31 not out from 13 balls as Lancashire smashed 93-6, then Richard Green took three wickets in four balls to wreck the Yorkshire reply.

But Lancashire are still six points behind leaders Warwickshire even though with two games to play, they do have a game in hand.

Andy Flintoff is out of the championship game against Essex starting at Old Trafford tom orrow after suffering a broken hand playing for the second team against Yorkshire last week.

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