In his final game before retirement, Jeremy Snape made a telling contribution to help Leicestershire Foxes pick up their first victory in the competition this season, edging out Nottinghamshire Outlaws by five runs at Grace Road.

When Snape entered the attack in the 17th over, Nottinghamshire needed 26 from the last four overs to overcome the Foxes' total of 131 for six, but the former England off-spinner bowled two tight overs for 10 runs. He also took the key wicket of Adam Voges, Nottinghamshire's top scorer with 59, leg-before to a quicker ball. Nine were needed from the final over, but Jim Allenby took wickets with his first two balls and, when Charlie Shreck was run out from the fifth ball, Nottinghamshire were all out.

Allenby is becoming something of a last-over specialist. Ten days ago, against Lancashire, he took four wickets in as many balls in the final over. Last night, he held his nerve again to have Paul Franks and Andre Adams both caught at deep cover from his first two balls. With seven needed from the last two balls, Shreck hesitated fatally over a second run after Rob Ferley had driven to long-off. Nottinghamshire had thus missed out on the opportunity to go second in the North Group and they have Lancashire and Yorkshire - two rivals for qualification - to play in their final two games.

Voges had played something of a lone had after Nadeem Malik's excellent spell with the new ball. Malik took a wicket in each of his four overs to take four for 16, reducing the Outlaws to 41 for four in the seventh over. Voges went on to reach his half-century from 41 balls with six fours and a six, struck crisply over midwicket off Jacques du Toit. But he lacked support, with only Adams and Mark Ealham the only other batsmen to reach double figures.

In contrast, Leicestershire had recovered from 11 for three thanks to a fourth-wicket stand of 89 in 12 overs between Allenby and Paul Nixon, the county's best in the Twenty20 Cup. Allenby hit 57 from 52 balls to drag the Foxes back into the hunt after Charlie Shreck had swung the new ball sharply to take four for 22. At that stage, it looked a long way back for the home side, but they rallied to give Snape a rousing farewell.

Leicestershire

H D Ackerman c Read b Adams 1
J du Toit c Jefferson b Shreck 3
H H Dippenaar c Jefferson b Shreck 1
*P A Nixon c Jefferson b Ferley 42
J Allenby b Shreck 57
J N Snape not out 11
C W Henderson c Cairns b Shreck 0

Extras (lb 5, w 9, nb 2) 16

Total (6 wkts, 20 overs) 131

J W A Taylor, M N Malik, S J Cliff and J K H Naik did not bat.

Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-8, 3-11, 4-100, 5-131, 6-131.

Bowling: Adams 4-0-29-1; Shreck 4-1-22-4; Franks 2-0-17-0; Ealham 4-0-26-0; Patel 2-0-12-0; Ferley 4-0-20-1.

Nottinghamshire

W I Jefferson c Nixon b Malik 0
A C Voges lbw b Snape 59
S R Patel lbw b Malik 5
B M Shafayat b Malik 9
C L Cairns b Malik 6
*C M W Read b Allenby 3
M A Ealham b Naik 12
A R Adams c Ackerman b Allenby 17
P J Franks c Naik b Allenby 2
R S Ferley not out 2
C E Shreck run out 1

Extras (lb 2, w 6, nb 2) 10

Total (19.5 overs) 126

Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-10, 3-28, 4-41, 5-51, 6-81, 7-120, 8-123, 9-123.

Bowling: Malik 4-0-16-4; Cliff 3-0-24-0; Henderson 3-0-24-0; Allenby 3.5-0-15-3; Naik 2-0-18-1; du Toit 2-0-17-0; Snape 2-0-10-1.

Umpires: J H Evans and T E Jesty.