Killeen does the ground work as Durham ease fears

THE perfect left-handed alliance of Jimmy Maher and Ben Harmison ensured that Neil Killeen's excellent work didn't go to waste yesterday as they halted jubilant Durham's slide towards relegation.

An unbroken stand of 134 clinched a seven-wicket win against Warwickshire at Riverside, with Maher finishing on 101 and Harmison on 61.

It was a brilliant effort after Durham began their pursuit of 195 to win by losing two wickets with the total on seven.

After losing three and drawing one of their previous four games, Durham's fourth win of the season should ensure safety, although Nottinghamshire taking maximum points at home to Kent last night means it isn't over yet.

It was Maher's second championship hundred, the first coming in the other home win against Middlesex in May.

His busy, rather than spectacular, accumulation made it reminiscent of his three C & G hundreds, which all came at a similar pace to yesterday's 125-ball effort.

Killeen took five of Warwickshire's remaining six wickets in the morning after Mick Lewis and Graham Onions got the day off to a dreadful start.

Alex Loudon hit four fours in Lewis's opening over on the way to his first half-century for 13 innings, and 56 had been added in 7.2 overs when Killeen ended the mayhem.

He went on to finish with the excellent figures of five for 29, the first time he has taken more than three wickets in a championship innings since his career-best seven for 70 against Hampshire at Riverside three years ago.

Killeen, 30, will be out of contract at the end of his benefit season, in which his three previous championship appearances brought seven wickets.

He remains one of the country's best one-day bowlers and as he is obviously an excellent squad man he has made it difficult for Durham to release him.

Generally an unlucky bowler, whose better balls beat the bat, he fully deserved yesterday's rewards as he exploited the help in the pitch by hitting the right spot.

That was something Lewis conspicuously failed to do after taking three of the wickets which reduced Warwickshire to 25 for four the previous evening.

His four overs yesterday cost 30 runs, while Onions' three went for 26. He has played in every championship match and it is unknown for a young Durham paceman to get through a season without injury, never mind a dip in form.

Jonathan Trott, who had made 49 out of 65 overnight, completed a 60-ball 50 by edging Onions for his eighth four before playing second fiddle to Loudon.

The ball was changed in the day's fourth over, but it made no difference until Killeen came on and struck in his second over.

He moved one away from Trott for Gareth Breese to take a comfortable catch at first slip, ending a stand of 96 in 17 overs.

Four overs later Dougie Brown departed in similar fashion, except this time Breese did well to hold the catch by his bootlaces.

Then Callum Thorp weighed in by hitting Heath Streak's off stump, swinging one in after generally moving it away.

Loudon was lbw for 55, trying to whip Killeen to leg, then he nipped one back off the seam to hit Tim Groenewald's middle stump.

Finally Paul Harris shaped to pull and skied a top-edge into the off side. Dale Benkenstein, coming in from mid-off, called for the catch but Harmison kept on coming from cover.

It was just as well neither was going flat out as they were able to avoid a collision and Harmison held the catch.

With time for four overs before lunch Durham lost two wickets to successive balls from Lee Daggett in the second over.

John Steele gave Gary Scott out lbw when well forward then adjudged Gordon Muchall caught behind first ball, much to the batsman's disbelief.

Durham would have dined nervously on seven for two at lunch, but started just as positively afterwards as Warwickshire had in the morning.

Benkenstein was on five when he pulled Brown for six, and although Maher took three fours in an over off Daggett the captain soon went past him.

They had taken 54 off eight overs when left-arm spinner Harris came on, but the breakthrough came at the other end when Benkenstein edged a forcing back-foot shot off Brown to fall for 31.

The captain had been left stranded at Edgbaston in June, when his team crumbled around him to be all out for 141, 19 short of victory.

With 133 still needed when he departed yesterday things did not look good, but the absence of Streak from the visiting attack with his back problem obviously helped and the lack of opportunity for a marathon stint was not in Harris's favour.

While taking six for 94 in the first innings, he looked the type of bowler who succeeds through relentless accuracy and Durham's left-handed duo played him remarkably well yesterday.

Maher often swept him with the spin, but also cut him when he dropped short, while the really classy strokes came from Harmison. The youngster was on 12 when he edged Groenewald through the slips, but the rest of his 13 fours were of the highest order, including the sweep with which he completed the win.

* Durham's Mick Lewis has been reprimanded by the ECB after being reported by the umpires at Hove last week for swearing at spectators.

The Australian twice incurred the fans' wrath through time wasting and on the second occasion responded with an audible obscenity. The reprimand stays on his record for two years, during which any further breach will incur a three-point penalty.

Scorecard

Durham v Warwickshire at Riverside

Overnight: Durham 284 (D M Benkenstein 79, B
W Harmison 65; P L Harris 6-94). Warwicks 314
(T D Groenewald 76; C D Thorp 4-57) and 65-4.

Warwickshire Second Innings
I J Trott c Breese b Killeen 69
(pushed forward, edged to first slip 79b, 11-4s)
A G Loudon lbw b Killeen 55
(tried to whip to leg 80b, 9-4s)
D R Brown c Breese b Killeen 2
(pushed forward, edged to first slip 9b)
H H Streak b Thorp 2
(ball swung in 13b)
T D Groenewald b Killeen 7
(ball cut back 11b, 1-6)
P L Harris c Harmison b Killeen 19
(top-edged pull to cover 21b, 4-4s)
L M Daggett not out 1
Extras (lb1 pens 0) 1
Total (40.4 overs) 164
Fall: 1-0 2-4 3-4 4-25 5-121 6-131 7-134 8-138 9-
153
Bowling: Onions 8-3-50-1. M L Lewis 10-2-52-3.
Thorp 11-2-32-1. Killeen 11.4-4-29-5.

Durham Second Innings
J P Maher not out 101
(126b, 14-4s)
G M Scott lbw b Daggett 0
(well forward 2b)
G J Muchall c Ambrose b Daggett 0
(pushed forward, edged to keeper 1b)
D M Benkenstein c Ambrose b Brown 31
(edged forcing back-foot shot 38b, 2-4s, 1-6)
B W Harmison not out 61
(84b, 13-4s)
Extras (lb3 pens 0) 3
Total 3 wkts (41.5 overs) 196
Fall: 1-7 2-7 3-62
Bowling: Daggett 9-1-54-2. Brown 11-3-36-1.
Harris 8-0-28-0. Groenewald 6-0-29-0. Loudon 3-
0-11-0. Ali 4.5-0-35-0.
Durham (19pts) beat Warwickshire (6pts) by 7 wkts