IF THE fates were generally in Durham's favour on their way to winning the Friends Provident Trophy last season, they have certainly conspired against them in the last four days.

Three successive away defeats mean their chances of progressing to the quarter-finals are positively anorexic, but it was a dubious umpiring decision which derailed them yesterday.

On the Headingley ground where he enjoyed much success as a bowler, Peter Hartley belatedly responded to an optimistic appeal from his old sparring partner Darren Gough by giving out an astonished Phil Mustard caught behind.

After Dale Benkenstein lost his third successive toss and Durham were asked to bat in conditions favouring the seamers, Mustard had battled with great diligence to get them to 69 for one.

Given the obvious difficulties, they would have been well satisfied at that stage, especially as Mustard was just beginning to get into his formidable stride.

He was on 26 when he drove well wide of off stump and was sent on his way, to be followed two balls later by Paul Collingwood as Durham subsided to 185 all out.

Their misfortunes did not, however, excuse a shoddy bowling display at the start of Yorkshire's reply, which allowed lefthanded opener Andrew Gale to thrash 68 off 49 balls.

Yorkshire avenged their lastball defeat at Riverside in the opening match by getting home with five wickets and 14.1overs to spare.

Although he took three wickets, Steve Harmison came in for heavy punishment in his first two overs and would not have impressed England captain Michael Vaughan.

But straight after Harmison had Gale caught at slip Vaughan played a poor shot, spooning a catch to point to fall for 22 and hand a wicket to Graham Onions.

As he prepares to join up with England Lions to face New Zealand tomorrow Onions had been pulled for two fours and a six by Gale in his previous over.

Also looking to make a bigger impression tomorrow, in Durham's championship match at Old Trafford, will be Collingwood after surviving a total of three balls over the last two days.

He turned the first very competently through mid-wicket for two yesterday, but the next was perfectly pitched and left him just enough to take the edge on the way to Gerard Brophy.

It became three wickets in two overs for Gough when Neil McKenzie edged to Jacques Rudolph at second slip, and at 81 for four the hard work put in by Mustard and Kyle Coetzer in laying solid foundations had been shot to pieces.

In truth, Coetzer might have gone at any time early in his innings.

While the Scot enjoyed the luck that the rest of the team have lacked, rarely can a bowler be as unfortunate as Deon Kruis in emerging from ten overs without a wicket.

He beat Coetzer three or four times an over, and twice saw lofted leading edges just evade fielders, but to his credit the batsman remain unruffled and battled on to make 61.

He then became the first of three victims for medium pacer Richard Pyrah, the last two coming as Durham lost their last four wickets for three runs.

It was disappointing after they overcame the early loss of Michael Di Venuto, who was shaping to run a ball from Tim Bresnan to third man when it nipped back and had him lbw.

With Mustard content to scramble singles, Coetzer dominated the strike and after all his playing and missing he suddenly drove Bresnan for a straight six.

When Mustard, on 11, pulled Kruis for his first four in the 13th over it was only the 22nd ball he had faced.

He also hit the next two balls for two and four, and when he made room to slap Gough to the boundary in front of point it seemed his patience would be rewarded.

But Gough's three-wicket burst left Benkenstein to repair the damage and he carefully put on 53 in 15 overs with Coetzer before they fell in successive overs.

Coetzer's 101-ball innings ended when he drove at an inswinger from Pyrah and was bowled, then the captain took a fatal step down the pitch to a ball from Adil Rashid which turned sharply.

From 136 for six Durham partially recovered through a stand of 46 between Ben Harmison and Gareth Breese, who batted well for his unbeaten 27.

Harmison junior has yet to look comfortable in forcing the pace and when he tried in the 43rd over he skied a catch to midon.

None of the last three troubled the scorers, although Onions looked surprised to be adjudged run out by umpire Hartley.

Durham were all out with 4.3 overs unused, but conditions had eased after the morning rain and none of their bowlers found the movement enjoyed by the home seamers.

It didn't help that they often bowled too short, feeding Gale's pull, and by the time he had scored 50 of Yorkshire's first 65 runs they were cruising to victory.

The loss of two wickets on 94 was a minor wobble as Jacques Rudolph and Anthony McGrath needed to score at fewer than three an over.

They added 58 before Rudolph, who had just driven Breese for a straight six, tried to pull a ball from Harmison which would have been a wide had the lefthander not gloved it to Mustard.

Off the next ball Harmison had Rashid caught at second slip, but Bresnan joined McGrath in picking off the remaining 34 runs.

Yorkshire now have two wins out of three, while Durham must win their remaining four group games, starting in Edinburgh on Sunday, to have any hope of qualifying for the quarter-finals.

9:08am Tuesday 6th May 2008

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