Centuries from Ricardo Vasconcelos and Nathan McSweeney helped Northamptonshire secure maximum batting bonus points as their rain-affected Rothesay County Championship Division Two promotion clash with Kent ended in a draw at Wantage Road.

With the match destined for a draw after rain washed out day three, collecting bonus points was the priority for both Kent and Northamptonshire, who were separated by just four points in second and third place respectively at the start of the match.

Northamptonshire took the attack to the Kent bowlers before finally declaring on 450 for six at 5.30pm. Along with three bowling points and eight for the draw, they collected 16 points from the game. Kent, meanwhile, picked up two bowling points, plus their two batting points from earlier in the match and eight for the draw.

The result leaves the promotion race intriguingly poised with the two sides now level on points. However, Kent retain their narrow hold on second place by virtue of having won one more game.

Resuming on 74 without loss, Vasconcelos set the tone, hitting 15 fours and two sixes in his 119 as he passed 6,000 career first-class runs. It was his fifth century of the summer and his second against the Spitfires. He now stands as the second-highest run-scorer in a hotly contested Division Two promotion race.

McSweeney’s 109, his fourth Championship ton of the season, came as he shared a stand of 83 in 16 overs with Vasconcelos before adding a rapid 124 at almost six runs an over with Saif Zaib who made 72. James Sales weighed in with an aggressive unbeaten 48 before the close.

Earlier Vasconcelos started the day crunching Ekansh Singh through the covers and soon brought up his half-century. Soon after though, Luke Procter prodded outside off-stump to Grant Stewart and was caught behind without adding to his overnight 28.

Vasconcelos drove fluently through the covers but enjoyed moments of luck too, nicks off the edges of his bat flying behind him for boundaries.

New batter Calvin Harrison pulled for a brace of fours but was trapped lbw when he went to pull the first ball of Matt Parkinson’s spell.

Kent were vociferous with their appeals, but Vasconcelos pulled Keith Dudgeon behind square to take the hosts past 150.

McSweeney also played positively, responding to an lbw appeal from Parkinson by striking his next ball straight for six onto the roof of the Lynn Wilson Centre and crashing Tawanda Muyeye’s first delivery through the covers.

Vasconcelos brought up his century in style by smashing Parkinson straight for six shortly before lunch but fell soon after the interval when he played across one from Singh that slightly tailed in and kept low.

Zaib started brightly, cutting Dudgeon wristily behind point while McSweeney pulled Dudgeon imperiously, the 250 following soon afterwards before Zaib twice drove crisply through cover off the seamers.

Zaib continued the forward momentum, sweeping Muyeye for consecutive boundaries before reverse sweeping as he moved to a run-a-ball half-century to bring up the 300.

Zaib cut Muyeye square and then smacked him through cover before McSweeney reverse swept for four as Northamptonshire took the lead and reached 350. But on the stroke of tea, Kent finally broke through when Parkinson turned one sharply out of the bowlers’ footmarks to trap Zaib lbw.

After the break, McSweeney moved to his century, while Sales smashed Parkinson down the ground for six and four. Northamptonshire then duly passed 400 before Dudgeon trapped McSweeney lbw.

Despite that, Northamptonshire batted on amid several impassioned lbw appeals from Dudgeon as they chased a fifth batting point.

Supported by George Bartlett, Sales continued to attack, punching Parkinson through cover, although he was dropped behind off Stewart on 42.

With just one run needed for the final batting point, Bartlett slapped a short wide ball from Stewart to point. It earned Kent the coveted second bowling point which was effectively cancelled out when Northants passed 450 in the next over.

Kent head coach Adam Hollioake said: “The wicket was either doing a bit or doing nothing. I think both sides experienced it. Wickets fell in clumps, and then there were other periods where there were good partnerships. So, a real interesting game. Would have been nice to have had the full four days.”

“We were fighting ferociously for bonus points. It ended up being over bonus points. Of course, when you start the game, you don’t know that. But it was good. I mean, we’ve found it really hard to take wickets against Northants this year. I think they played well.”

“They got good left-handers, which we’ve struggled against throughout the season. So, it’s a really interesting run-in to the season now. We’ve both got four hard games in the month, and it’ll probably come down more to a battle of endurance as much as anything.”

“So, it’ll be interesting to see who comes out on top.”

[On Kent’s remaining fixtures in September, three of them at Canterbury] “I think weather’s going to play a part. Obviously, it’s September. Being at home is an advantage. Obviously, we’ll get to prepare the wickets we want, and we’ve got two brand new, fresh overseas bowlers coming, which will be an advantage as well.”

“So, we’re happy where we’re placed. But hey, we’ve still got to play good cricket. You know, if we just think that it’s just going to fall out of the sky, then we won’t end up doing it. So, we’ve got to work hard and be disciplined.”

Northamptonshire head coach Darren Lehmann said: “I’m very pleased with the batting today and late Friday night under difficult conditions. I thought Proccy [Luke Procter] and Vasco [Ricardo Vasconcelos] played well, and then the batters getting as many batting points as you could get today was the key, and we got them all. So, they all did the job. They played for the team.

“We had to score at a decent rate to get full batting points. So, I thought it was a really good day. I mean, you lose time, you can’t control the weather. Probably the only thing we can improve on is our bowling. First day, I thought we weren’t great, and then we rectified that on the second day pre-lunch, and then we went a bit wayward again.”

“So just being more consistent with the ball like we were at Lancs, is probably the only thing. And especially coming up against Durham next week, we’re going to have to be that.”

“I look at the Division One table and go, wow, that’s tight. And then I look at our table and it’s tight. So, that’s great for the game, isn’t it? The county game in general.”

“So, we walk away, we’ve got the leaders in the competition next week, but it was a great game for both sides. They’ll (Kent) be happy with that. We’re happy with that. You can’t control the weather. You’d love four whole days of it, but it did ebb and flow.”

“And the great thing about bonus points is exactly that interesting last half hour, how it plays out. So that’s a plus for the game. They probably could change the format [of the bonus points system] a little bit, but it’s not a big one for me here or there.”

“You got to play good cricket to win games, and we showed that we’re competitive enough. Wicket was good. Wicket took some spin, which was pleasing. Both sides played well. Both sides probably walk away happy, considering the weather. And now it’s onto the last four games.”