DURHAM survived comfortably in the end. After going into the final day of their season haunted by a remote fear of relegation, they ensured they can finish no lower than fifth by beating Worcestershire by three wickets.

After being set a target of 291 in 71 overs, they got home with 4.2 overs to spare after Scott Borthwick's majestic innings of 99 laid the platform and Michael Richardson calmly completed the job with an unbeaten 65.

Any temptation to dig in for a draw was eased by the knowledge that Hampshire were struggling to pull off the win which might have left Durham sweating on other results next week.

It was also a red-letter day for Chris Rushworth, who began it by bowling Daryl Mitchell to claim his 100th wicket of the season in county cricket, of which 83 have come in the championship.

Paul Collingwood joined Borthwick on 79 for two, knowing that on recent evidence Durham would be vulnerable if they lost another wicket quickly. But despite his recent lack of runs, the captain looked secure.

There seemed no way his ship was going to sink and it was a surprise when he got out for 47 with 76 needed off 19.3 overs.

Three more wickets went down before Barry McCarthy went in with 25 needed and Durham were helped by the fading light preventing Worcestershire from bowling their quicker men. McCarthy coolly lifted leg-spinner Brett D'Oliveira for two fours in making 12 not out.

Richardson efficiently capitalised on at least one bad ball every over, hitting 11 fours in scoring his runs off 69 balls.

He joined Collingwood with 108 needed off 27 overs, which was not dissimilar to the situation at Worcester when the captain made 127 and the wicketkeeper 66 not out in the six-wicket win.

Richardson was not afraid to get down the pitch and drive D'Oliveira or to rock back and pull West Indian paceman Shannon Gabriel.

After going wicketless in the first innings, Gabriel had Jack Burnham lbw with his sixth ball and Collingwood caught behind off an edged drive.

Only four were on the board when Borthwick joined Mark Stoneman. But after going off like a train, only to be fatally derailed, in last week's chase at Trent Bridge, they adopted a measured approach in taking the score to 79.

Stoneman was on 28 when he slapped a back-foot shot off Jack Shantry straight to cover, but the groundwork had been done and Durham never seriously looked like failing.

Having made ten previous half-centuries this season, Borthwick's only conversion to three figures had come in making 103 at Worcester in June. He was left on 97 not out at home to Sussex and this was the third time he had fallen in the 90s.

Just as in his first innings 73 he was out trying to pull D'Oliveira and was entitled to blame low bounce as he was pinned lbw.

The defeat confirmed Worcestershire's relegation and it was tough on both them and Hampshire that the loss of a day's play in games they were dominating forced them to set reachable targets.

There was enough evidence of talent among Worcestershire's young players to suggest they will come back all the stronger. But they didn't have the bowling resources yesterday to find life in a placid pitch.

This was Durham's seventh win and ended a run of six defeats and a draw. Surprisingly, the draw at the Ageas Bowl was the only one of the season, Hampshire hanging on with nine wickets down.

In the morning Worcestershire added 175 runs in 25 overs, Ross Whiteley leading the way with 47 off 21 off balls, as they aimed for a lunchtime declaration. They called a halt four minutes before the scheduled break when the ninth wicket went down on 217.