A BLISTERING half century from Glen Chapple failed to establish a signi-ficant advantage for Lanca-shire in their must-win LV County Championship Division One match against Kent at Canterbury.

Chapple scored 88 and temporarily altered the tempo of a contest in which the title-chasing visitors had appeared satisfied with attritional accumulation to gain a first-innings lead.

The all-rounder targeted James Tredwell's off-spin, launching him for five sixes and four fours from 44 balls on his way to 50 - before consolidating against the second new ball as he and Stuart Law (66) plundered 118 in 24 overs to leave Lancashire on 316 for eight by stumps on day two, in reply to Kent's 327 all out.

Lancashire's top order had failed to build on promising starts, openers Mark Chilton (53) and Paul Horton in particular giving themselves up tamely after sharing a careful stand of 85 on a placid pitch and under sunny skies.

Horton's hopes of moving into elite company by making a third successive championship hundred for the Red Rose ended when he attempted an aerial cut at an undeserving short ball from Martin Saggers (four for 43).

Chilton had good reason to be even more annoyed with himself when, one ball after bringing up his 50 with a high-class on-drive off Tredwell, he turned the off-spinner for a straightforward catch to backward short-leg.

Steven Croft played fluently until Simon Cook got one to keep a little low and beat an unsuspecting back-foot defence - and once VVS Laxman had gone to a low catch at first slip by Tredwell off Saggers, it seemed much rested on Law to keep Lancashire ahead of the game. Law duly did his bit but after Luke Sutton had gone caught behind to some extra bounce from Saggers from the first ball after tea, it was a measure of Chapple's dominance that he outscored his illustrious sixth-wicket partner by more than three runs to one.

The Earby all-rounder announced himself on the way to his best score for more than three years with a six off the mark over long-on - off Tredwell, of course.

By the time he hit the off-spinner for a fifth maximum, Tredwell's outfielders had been posted well back - and Neil Dexter got a fingertip as he parried another over the boundary at long-on, with Chapple on 42.

That was the only semblance of a chance until Chapple inside-edged Saggers on to his stumps, with Lancashire still 30 runs behind.

Tredwell then further applied the brakes by picking up two late wickets - most significantly bowling Law with an off-break, three runs short of 1,000 championship runs this season, to restore the mid-match balance.