English Cricket : 2011 County Championship, Division 2, Round 15

Four teams are still vying for two promotion spots as Surrey and Gloucestershire kept up the pressure on Middlesex, who could only manage a draw, and Northamptonshire, who had no game in this round.

Middlesex lead the way with one game to go on 216 points after a draw against Glamorgan in Cardiff.

After two days of rain, in which no play was possible, Glamorgan batted first and were dismissed for just 157. William Bragg making 52, while Gareth Berg took 6-58.

Middlesex wobbled to 79-4 in reply before Chris Rogers (121) and John Simpson (95) helped them to 302-8 declared. Will Owen was the pick of the home side's bowlers with 5-124.

Glamorgan reached 178-4 before the match was ended as a draw. The Welsh county are seventh after 15 games on 156 points.

Northamptonshire occupy the second promotion spot on 204 points after 15 games.

Surrey are third on 203 points after 15 games as they recorded their third straight win with a 109-run victory against Essex in Chelmsford.

Surrey found themselves 148-6 in their first innings before they recovered to post 315. Chris Jordan hit 71, while Graham Napier claimed 6-53.

Tom Westley hit 57 and Ryan ten Doeschate 56 as Essex made 253 in reply. Stuart Meaker took 5-66 and Tim Linley 4-48.

The away side slipped to 128-6 the second time around but Zander de Bruyn's century and Jordan (79 not out) again rescued them, before they were all out for 286. David Masters claimed 6-93.

Chasing 349, Essex lost regular wickets despite Graham Napier's 80, and were all out for 239. Chris Jordan took 4-57 and Tim Linley 4-61 to secure a Surrey victory by 109 runs.

Essex have finished for the season in sixth place after four wins, four defeats, and eight draws on 159 points.

Gloucestershire are fourth, nine behind second place on 195 points with one game remaining, after they beat Leicestershire by 10 wickets in Bristol.

The home side posted 394 in their first innings after recovering from 82-5, with Will Gidman hitting 83 not out, Alex Gidman 81 and Ian Cockbain 63. Nathan Buck picked up 5-99.

Leicestershire lost their last four wickets on 135 as only four batsmen made double figures and six recorded ducks. David Payne's 6-26 was the pick of the home side's bowlers.

Following on, Leicestershire put up a stiffer fight as James Taylor made 70 and Ned Eckersley 63 in a total of 311. David Payne took 3-70 and Ian Saxelby 2-56. 

Chasing just 53 to win, the home side reached their target with all wickets intact.

Leicestershire will finish bottom of the Division Two table this season but have 83 points with one game remaining.

Derbyshire are fifth on 179 points after a 101-run victory against Kent at the County Ground in Derby.

The home side recorded 535 in their first innings, Ross Whiteley hit 130 not out, Wes Durston 118, Jonathan Clare 77 and Matt Lineker 71. David Balcome was the pick of the bowlers with 6-128.

Joe Denly hit a superb 199 and Azhar Mahmood 97 as Kent replied with 419. Tony Palladino claimed 5-84, including Mahmood, three runs short of a century.

Will Madsen's 73 held together Derbyshire's second innings as they scrambled to 181. Darren Stevens took 3-17, Balcombe 3-26 and Matt Coles 3-68.

Chasing 298, only Denly (68) and Stevens (54) offered resistance as Kent were dismissed for 196. Jonathan Clare's 4-36 and Wes Durston's 4-45 ensured a 101-run victory.

The final round of fixtures, September 12-15, sees Leicestershire play Middlesex, Northamptonshire face Gloucestershire, Surrey play Derbyshire and Kent play Glamorgan in the first English county match to start at 2pm and use a pink ball.

Middlesex will be promoted if they win, a draw should be enough, if they lose they are relying on Surrey or Northamptonshire not winning their games.

Northamptonshire need a higher scoring win or draw than Surrey to collect more points.  

Surrey's best chance of promotion is if they win and Northamptonshire don't or Middlesex lose. Surrey could gain promotion if they achieve a higher-scoring victory or draw than Northamptonshire.

Gloucestershire need to beat Northamptonshire and hope either Surrey don't win or Middlesex lose heavily to gain promotion.