Kent claimed their first LV= Insurance County Championship Division 1 win of the season on Wednesday afternoon.

They defeated Gloucestershire by eight wickets after chasing a modest target of 88 to win at Canterbury in the final session.

Glenn Phillips led Gloucestershire’s resistance, batting for more than three hours to make 59, but the visitors were all out for 213.

Gloucestershire started the day four 37-5, still 89 behind the hosts’ first-innings total of 564 but facing a Kent attack minus Matt Milnes, who was being rested as a precaution after feeling a niggle late on day three.

Miles Hammond was on nought when he clipped Jacob Duffy to George Linde in the first over of the day, but the chance went down and for the next 40 minutes Gloucestershire chipped away at Kent’s lead, until Chris Dent tried to drive Duffy (5-65) and edged the ball to Jordan Cox at second slip. Cox could only parry the chance, but a diving Sam Billings took the rebound, removing Dent for 32.

Linde then got one to turn and bowl Hammond for 41, the ball pitching almost a foot outside off before crashing into the stumps.

Ryan Higgins took two from Jack Leaning to nudge the visitors into the lead and Linde couldn’t hold a difficult caught and bowled chance from Higgins in the final over before lunch, at which point Gloucestershire were 16 ahead with three wickets in hand.

Higgins had survived half-an-hour of the afternoon session when he played on to Matt Quinn and was bowled for 30 and Daniel Bell-Drummond then had Ollie Price caught by substitute fielder Will Harby for three at square leg, from just his third delivery.

An elegant cover drive saw Phillips past 50, but he eventually fell to a juggling slip catch by Cox off Linde, leaving Zafar Gohar unbeaten on seven.

Ollie Robinson began the run chase in quickfire mode, cracking 20 from the first three overs, before he fell to a brilliant one-handed catch by Hammond, while attempting to drive Gohar.

Ben Compton, who needed 42 to become the first County Championship player to make 1,000 runs this season, was initially more measured, taking Kent to within five runs of victory before he was lbw to Phillips for 30.

Leaning finished on eight not out after driving Phillips for four to level the scores and then hitting the same bowler to the cover boundary to clinch the win, while Bell-Drummond was unbeaten on 20.

Duffy said: “The spell last night was just one of those things.

"I’d struggled, massively, on day one. A lot of things weren’t clicking I guess, so it was nice to correct that on day three.

"It was just one of those moments when everything happens for you. I think we talked about getting one or two wickets and that would have been fine, but you just take what you can get in those situations and luckily they kept sending in nightwatchmen, so you play what's in front of you.

"We were lucky enough to hold our catches and take our chances.

"It was a bit of a relief to get the five-wicket haul. I’m only here for a couple of games and you want to put your best foot forward and help Kent because we’re in a bit of a sticky situation down near the bottom.

"There was a bit of relief, especially after day one.

"I came here with the New Zealand team as part of their extended squad and, once they cut it to 15 for the Test, I was actually hanging around on holiday in Bristol.

"I played a couple of club sessions and managed to get in touch with the Kent guys.

"They obviously need bowling at the moment, so it just worked out beautifully.”