GRAHAM Onions’ back injury is not as bad as first feared, but he will not be fit for Durham’s next LV Championship game starting at Taunton on Monday.

Coach Jon Lewis said: “It’s still too early to tell how long he will be out but the results of the scan he had on Tuesday were quite encouraging.

“He won’t travel to Taunton, but Trent Bridge the following Sunday is a possibility.”

Onions, who missed the 2010 season following major back surgery, took no further part in the rain-ruined draw at Hove after bowling an eight-over stint at the start of the match.

Lewis also hopes that Ben Stokes will play for the Academy this weekend as he begins his comeback from his broken wrist. But it will be at least two weeks before he plays any first team cricket.

Durham now turn their attentions to the NatWest T20 Blast with a home game against Worcestershire tomorrow evening and have registered Scotsman Calum MacLeod for the competition.

After impressing Paul Collingwood during his winter stint as Scotland coach, MacLeod has been playing for Durham seconds and scored a century in a T20 match against Yorkshire.

“He’s an option,” said Lewis, who looks a little short of real firepower in the middle order.

“We’ll get down to some serious practice tomorrow, but we won’t be starting until noon because we won’t get back from Hove until after midnight.

“Worcester have had the week off, so they have had more time to prepare, but we have used our time well in the indoor nets during the rain breaks at Hove. The lads have put a lot of work in on their white ball skills.”