Yorkshire saved their crucial LV= County Championship match against Nottinghamshire at Headingley today.

Despite a nervous batting display for the first two sessions of the final day, Andrew Gale's team can look back on a job well done as they have kept pace with Division One's new leaders.

Notts are now five points clear at the top, and have a game in hand on the Tykes. Yorkshire have played 12 matches, Notts 11.

The rain forecast for the majority of the day only arrived at tea-time with the hosts perilously placed at 406-8 after 153 overs of their second innings, only 39 runs ahead with two wickets and 34 overs remaining.

Jacques Rudolph's 141 off 241 balls and Anthony McGrath's 80 off 263 were the innings of substance, although 37 from Gerard Brophy, 34 not out from Adil Rashid and 26 off 116 balls from nightwatchman Steve Patterson also proved crucial.

Yorkshire lost six wickets today, McGrath, Gale, Patterson, Jonny Bairstow, Brophy and Ajmal Shahzad all falling.

Ryan Sidebottom and Darren Pattinson both claimed three wickets apiece for the visitors.

Had rain not arrived during the tea break, Yorkshire would have faced a nervous last session of the match.

As it was, the four-and-a-half sessions they batted proved to be sufficient to take five points out of the match instead of two. But it was the 13 points that Notts failed to get that are arguably the more important.

A 62-run partnership for the seventh wicket in 21 overs between Rashid and Brophy took Yorkshire into the lead.

The White Rose only scored one boundary during the morning - off the bat of Patterson.

The pace bowler spent just short of two-and-a-half hours at the crease.

Group A leaders Yorkshire travel to Chesterfield on Sunday to face Derbyshire in the Clydesdale Bank 40 competition.