Local boy Steve Harmison's devastating pace bowling and determined late-order batting were the only positive points to take from a dismal performance by England, as they lost by seven wickets for the second match in a row.

After scoring only 101, their eighth worst total in one-day internationals, they had little chance of victory against a strong New Zealand line-up, whose eventual easy win with 32.4 overs left won them a bonus point.

England must seriously consider changes to a line-up which has been wiped out for the second match in succession and is declining in this form of the game as swiftly as it is improving in Tests.

At least one England player can hold his head up high after the game. Fresh from a last-wicket partnership of 23 with James Anderson which prevented England falling short of their lowest ever total of 86, Harmison bowled with real fire and pace.

His average delivery was around 92mph and his quickest over 95mph, as he troubled all the New Zealand players and smashed Nathan Astle on the helmet with a lethal angling bouncer.

His spell of 3-38 , including the wickets of Fleming cutting to third man for 31, Astle for 15, lbw not playing a shot, and Marshall for five struggling to play his steep bounce, was never going to win England the game but at least it gave the 12,000 capacity crowd something to cheer about.

He was well supported by the veteran Darren Gough bowling about 10mph slower but finding enough movement to show that the pitch was not an easy one to bat on.

Perhaps England misread it imagining they would be able to post a big score as there was enough movement to suggest that 250 would have been a tough target.

Certainly they set off with an over-aggressive batting approach on a seaming pitch in overcast conditions, which confirmed their inability to set convincing totals. The last 20 one-day internationals involving England have been won by the side batting second.

They can point to the absence of the talismanic figure of the injured Andrew Flintoff, and to the retirements of Nasser Hussain and Graham Thorpe in one-day cricket which have left them short of quality in the middle-order.

But they persist in picking bits and pieces cricketers like Ian Blackwell and, especially Anthony McGrath, who lack the class to become successful at this level.

If the high-class all-rounders do not exist then England must play more specialist batsmen and make do in the bowling stakes. Otherwise how can they hope to compete with a side like New Zealand, who line-up is crammed with players who have made first class centuries.

The mysterious decision to leave out Robert Key, who has six first-class hundreds to his name this summer and to continue to ignore the high-quality option of Mark Butcher, who also bowls, again left them over-reliant on the first four in the order, all Test players.

They hardly set the finest example, as both Trescothick and Vaughan fell to over-aggressive shots against good balls, when the runs were already flowing freely.

Trescothick went for 14 advancing down the pitch to Oram and trying to hoik a good-length ball through the legside. It was not a wise shot during Oram's tight opening spell, especially as he had already struck three fours off bad balls by Franklin, including two superb pulls off longhops.

At the other end Vaughan was equally guilty of lack of patience as he attempted a flamboyant drive when on 12 off a James Franklin inswinger and was bowled through a large gap between bat and pad.

It was a typical dismissal for Vaughan whose poor one-day record is a result of an incapacity to demonstrate the patience and solid technique he does in Tests, where he scores quickly enough with correct strokeplay.

Credit must also go to the bowler, Franklin, whose 5-42 was his best return in one-day cricket. He mixed swing into the right-handers with angled deliveries across them and almost took a hat-trick in his final over.

Having dismissed Ian Blackwell lbw and Ashley Giles, next ball with a beauty moving across him to catch the edge for a duck, Gough only narrowly escaped being out first ball.

Umpire Jeremy Lloyds correctly adjudged the ball had pitched just outside leg, but Franklin fully deserved his success for persevering after being expensive early in the innings.

He was ably supported by a superb opening spell of accurate seam bowling from Jacob Oram, whose took 2-12 in his first six overs and eventually finished with 3-23.

The failure of England's openers had again put pressure on the new numbers three and four, Geraint Jones and Andrew Strauss, who had put on 82 at the weekend against West Indies before England collapsed.

But it is a lot to ask two such inexperienced performers to keep pulling England back into the match and it was not to be.

More specialist batsmen must be chosen if England are to get back into this series and, more importantly, win back some pride.

England: MP Vaughan (capt), ME Trescothick, GO Jones, AJ Strauss, PD Collingwood, A McGrath, ID Blackwell, AF Giles, SJ Harmison, JM Anderson, D Gough.

New Zealand: SP Fleming (capt), NJ Astle, H Marshall, SB Styris, CD McMillan, CL Cairns, JDP Oram, CZ Harris, GJ Hopkins, DL Vettori, JEC Franklin.

29 Jun, 2004