FOUR Durham players embarked on a hectic few days yesterday, which involved getting from Chester-le-Street to Billericay in Essex last night.

That's where the A team play their Second XI Trophy semi-final today, with tomorrow as a reserve day in case of rain.

They will be praying that doesn't happen as they have to be back at Riverside for Wednesday night's floodlit totesport match against Somerset.

Nicky Peng, Gary Pratt, Graeme Bridge and Liam Plunkett are the four travellers. Although they are established first team players, they have all played a part in the A team winning six out of seven games in this competition.

Off-spinner Gary Scott has been a major contributor, but he has broken a bone in a hand so Bridge will be required.

Gavin Hamilton could also return after his ankle injury, taking over from Mark Turner, who is to resume his England Under 19 career in the second Test against Bangladesh starting at Taunton tomorrow.

He had to return from the Youth World Cup in the winter without playing a game because of injury, but has been bowling with impressive pace recently.

PHIL Mustard's 193 for the A team against Northants at Darlington last week was the fourth highest score by a Durham player in the Second XI Championship. Mike Roseberry, Quentin Hughes and Gary Pratt have all hit double centuries.

Mustard hit 32 fours and scored his runs off 227 balls, with Director of Cricket Geoff Cook saying: "It's his second big hundred of the season.

"If he didn't get into the first team his target at the start of the season was to make 1,000 runs in ten games and he has a chance of doing it.

"After doing well in the Twenty20 Cup the long-term danger is that he thinks of himself as a one-day batsman. But he's better than that, and he's also an excellent wicketkeeper.

"When he comes back to a Second XI Championship game he is learning that you need a degree of patience. You have to play through the periods when people stop you scoring, and with his ability those periods will not last for long."

AS I remarked in this space 12 weeks ago, there was a danger that the highlight of the season had just passed. The thought occurred to me as I sat outside the Woolpack Inn at Slad, celebrating the astonishing win at Taunton with a pint of Uley Bitter.

The victory was the highlight, not the beer, although I haven't tasted a better pint all summer, which probably had more to do with the celebratory mood than the actual ale.

So, 12 weeks have slipped by, Durham haven't played on a Saturday since and it's rather ironic that when they take to the Riverside stage next Saturday the opponents will again be Somerset.

Other than Mark Davies' good form and Marcus North's double hundred at Cardiff, highlights in between have been in the totesport League, but there's been nothing - not even Cleethorpes - to hold a candle to that marvellous day at Taunton.

During a pre-match stroll along the Cleethorpes seafront last Sunday I overheard someone say: "I like it better here than Skeggy."

That doesn't say much for Skegness, but the Cleethorpes club was homely and welcoming, providing the usual outground intimacy which headquarters usually lack.

It seems strange that Nottinghamshire take a match to a club in Lincolnshire who play in the Yorkshire Premier League, but they obviously think it's good PR. Perhaps Durham should take one to Tynemouth or Ashington.

ALMOST three weeks after his injury, Mark Davies is still the country's leading wicket-taker in the championship on 50.

At the time his nearest challengers were Andy Caddick on 41 and Essex's Danish Kaneria on 40, but the former has also been injured while the latter went off to the Asia Cup and is not coming back.

Gloucestershire seamer Jon Lewis has now moved into second position on 45, closely followed by Glamorgan's David Harrison and Somerset's Nixon McLean.

Read more about Durham County Cricket Club here.