Durham hoping for miracle to complete title hat-trick
DURHAM began the season by demolishing Worcestershire and ended it hoping that division one's bottom club could summon unaccustomed resistance against Sussex at Hove.
By completing their sensational campaign with an eight-wicket win against Kent at Canterbury, Durham moved to the top of the table, but Sussex will be champions again if they win today.
And they are likely to see off relegated Worcester, as they are following on at 190-5.
Lancashire's struggles at the Oval mean that Durham will at least finish second after winning the Friends Provident Trophy and division two of the NatWest Pro40 League.
Skipper Dale Benkenstein said: "It's been unbelievable. To finish the way we have shows the commitment and quality of the team and it's been a really satisfying season.
"We knew we had a good one-day squad and the goal in four-day cricket was to finish in the top four. Michael Di Venuto has given us consistently good starts, Steve Harmison had a big impact at the start of the season and Ottis Gibson has been outstanding.
"But it's been a wonderful squad effort and we have had young guys scoring hundreds, which have helped us to win games.
"I have been brought up in winning teams, but I don't think our success is anything to do with what I say. I just hope the way I play my cricket is passed on and if it makes a difference that's fantastic."
Durham wrapped up victory inside two hours on the third day at Canterbury and decided to stay overnight to celebrate their success before splitting up.
Phil Mustard and Ottis Gibson are flying to Sri Lanka to join the England one-day squad and Benkenstein is to take a family holiday in Barbados before returning for Durham's Player of the Year dinner on October 1.
"Whatever happens at Hove we deserve to celebrate tonight," he said. "It's the last time we'll be together until next season, when we should have the same squad.
"Other teams are going to get better and we want to keep on improving as a squad. The mental aspect of the game is very big now, but the confidence is really growing in this side. They are really starting to believe in themselves.
"Phil Mustard is an exceptional talent. He has consistently taken attacks apart at the start of our one-day innings but he musn't start feeling under pressure when he plays for England. He should just play the way he does naturally for us."
Gibson, who took his 80th championship wicket of the season when he splattered Simon Cook's stumps with a perfect yorker, said: It's great to be champions for a day.
"We are on the pinnacle at the moment and I just hope Worcestershire can hang on or a nasty fog comes in off the coast. We are enjoying the moment."
Also enjoying the moment was Don Robson, the man credited with getting Durham into first-class cricket in 1992.
"It's beyond belief that we have come so far. You have to pinch yourself," he said. "The whole culture of cricket in Durham has changed. There are so many more schools playing the game and we have hundreds of coaches where we used to have half a dozen.
"If you were looking to thank someone for what has been achieved it would have to be Geoff Cook. We brought him in in 1991 and he has worked tirelessly."
Durham were fired up yesterday as they moved in for the kill and they needed only 65 minutes to take the remaining seven Kent wickets, with Liam Plunkett doing the early damage in a spell of three for five in 13 balls.
Martin van Jaarsveld was aiming towards square leg when he was adjudged lbw off the 12th ball of the day, then 17-year-old debutant Sam Northeast went fourth ball.
Extra bounce found the shoulder of the bat and the ball lobbed into the off side, where Mark Stoneman raced in from point to hold a diving catch.
At 113 for five Kent were in a hopeless position, only four runs in front and there was to be no resistance.
Neil Dexter edged to Mustard, then left-hander James Tredwell edged Graham Onions to Shivnarine Chanderpaul at first slip.
When Gibson replaced Plunkett he continued his remarkable habit of striking in his first over as his third ball leapt at left-hander Ryan McLaren, who gloved it to Chanderpaul.
The next ball accounted for Cook, but when Gibson attempted to repeat the yorker to last man Martin Saggers he didn't quite reach the blockhole and the ball was driven through extra cover.
Saggers made 14 in a last-wicket stand of 23 with Geraint Jones before he was bowled by Paul Wiseman, who finished with four for 45 after taking the first three wickets on Thursday evening.
Durham needed only 52 to win and Kent decided to use joke bowlers, which might not have gone down well at Hove.
Stoneman and Kyle Coetzer were lulled into a false sense of security as they holed out going for big leg-side shots, but with 20 needed Wiseman went in to complete the job with Di Venuto
11:04am Saturday 22nd September 2007
Print 
Email this 
Comment
What are these links for?
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
More on Digg
More on del.icio.us
More on Furl
More on reddit
More on NowPublic/
More on Yahoo!
