Tasmania has claimed first innings points and holds a first innings lead of 20 runs with three wickets in hand in the Pura Cup cricket clash with Western Australia at the WACA.

At stumps on the second day, the Tigers were 7-249 with Sean Clingeleffer on eight and David Saker 10.

Fuelled by half centuries to Dene Hills and Shane Watson, Tasmania took the first step towards captain Jamie Cox's pre-match challenge to finish the season with a win to drag the Tigers off the bottom of the ladder.

Hills, struck eight boundaries in his 225 minute innings of 69 before cutting Jo Angel (3-61) to Matthew Nicholson at gully on the last ball before tea.

Watson was the first wicket to fall in the afternoon session when he edged Angel to Michael Hussey for 54 to make the score 3-147.

Then when Scott Kremerskothen plundered all but five runs of his 37 from boundaries, the Tigers looked to be on the verge of establishing a formidable first innings lead.

But Brad Williams (2-46) stemmed the flow with a lively six over spell. First he tempted Kremerskothen into a drive that lobbed to Marcus North at mid-on and then found the edge off Daniel Marsh (34) to give wicketkeeper Mark Walsh his second catch for the innings.

By then the Tigers were 7-234 and the two points were in the bag, but the end of the resistance seemed near.

The Warriors made two early breakthroughs, capturing Cox for 20 and Michael Di Venuto for a second ball duck in the morning session after adding just one run from their overnight score of 9-228.

Cox struck four boundaries in reaching 20 before he was brilliantly run out attempting a third run by Warriors captain Simon Katich with a direct hit at the non-striker's end from the long-on boundary.

That brought Di Venuto to the crease but the former Australian one-day player was sent back to the pavilion without adding to the score when he edged paceman Nicholson (1-51) to Walsh behind the stumps.

Williams made the Warriors' only run this morning after three successive air swings. The second time his willow connected with leather he was out, his wild swing lofting Saker to Cox at mid-off for one.

© 2001 AAP