Dillon Pennington registered four wickets as a spirited Nottinghamshire kept alive their hopes of forcing a final-day victory over Leicestershire at Trent Bridge.

The Foxes, having resumed on 23-2, added just 227 runs in more than 92 overs thanks to the hosts’ clockwork-like bowling unit, reaching stumps on 250-7 - still 52 short of avoiding the follow-on.

Nightwatcher Josh Hull gave a fine account of himself to top-score with 97 - leaving his previous First-Class best of 35 far behind - but Pennington’s relentless return of 4/42 kept the visitors in check.

Tom Giles, on his First-Class debut as an injury substitute for Brett Hutton, also impressed with 2/26 from 11 overs, while Olly Stone added another scalp in his ongoing impressive individual season.

It was Pennington who made the first breakthrough of an energy-sapping day for Notts, seeing Rehan Ahmed slash an edge to Liam Patterson-White in the slips for 54 shortly after lunch.

It was a morning session of toil as Ahmed and Hull put on a stand of 50 together, only for Pennington to strike to remove the former just after he reached his individual half-century from 86 deliveries.

Stone then followed up as the hosts stood strong against a resistant Foxes top order, finally having Hamza Shaikh superbly taken by a diving Jack Haynes at third slip for 39.

At that point, the visitors were 204-4, but when Hull was finally uprooted by Pennington eight overs later, lbw to one that he played around while three shy of his ton, the momentum shifted late in the day.

Right-armer Giles gave a fine account of himself after entering the action at tea, and claimed his maiden First-Class scalp when he bowled Nick Kelly, who ignominiously shouldered arms, for 15.

There was worse to come for the visitors too, as Giles claimed a second with six overs remaining as Stephen Eskinazi was lbw for five, leaving Ben Cox and Ian Holland to fight their way to stumps.

They did so with resistance against a fired-up home attack, but even as the duo reached the relative safety of stumps, the Foxes remain seven down and with more work to do to avoid a last-day follow-on.