DURHAM'S Paul Collingwood and Steve Harmison will be at Buckingham Palace with the rest of the Ashes-winning heroes to receive their MBEs tomorrow.

Then they'll be joined by clubmate Liam Plunkett as they jet off to India at the weekend for three Test matches and seven one-day internationals.

"The MBE seems a bit surreal," said Collingwood, for whom it marked the end of a year in which he scored a record six championship centuries for Durham then played in the Ashes decider before making 96 and 80 in the third Test in Pakistan.

"I'm a bit embarrassed about it, but I have to see it as a reward for all the hard work me and my family have put in.

"To be involved in that final Ashes Test was the proudest moment of my career, but making 96 at Lahore was a big hurdle to get over. There were a lot of people doubting me and I was starting to wonder whether I was good enough for Test cricket.

"It was disappointing to get out on 96, but I now have the confidence to believe I can make a Test century."

Collingwood, who will be 30 in May, played in Lahore because Andrew Strauss had flown home to attend the birth of his first child.

The Durham vice-captain expects Strauss to go straight back into the side, but is hoping for a chance to add to his five Test caps.

"I joined the squad for the one-day internationals in India four years ago and the grounds there are excellent places to play. It will be hotter than Pakistan, but we will probably enjoy the tour more because there's more to do."

Collingwood was put back on a central contract last October after a year without one, so his availability for Durham next season could be greatly reduced.

"It's a hectic year with 320 days taken up by England duties, including the training," he said. "That's for those who play in every match and it will depend on how much I play in India as to whether I'm told to rest when we get back."

It's a good bet a player who should pass 100 one-day internationals this year will be fully involved at the end of a tour which finishes with the seventh one-dayer in Indore on April 15.

Durham's season begins three days after that with a four-day match against Kent at Canterbury.

* Durham will again take a County Championship match to Stockton next season when Kent are the visitors on June 13-16. Last year Durham beat Somerset by four wickets at the Grangefield Road ground and chief executive David Harker said: "The feedback from spectators was very positive so it's great to be able to play there again."

Without local council support, Darlington and Hartlepool are no longer keen to stage first-class games because of the costs involved, so Kent will visit Stockton for the first time.

They are the only county who have retained their division one status ever since the split in 2000.

The Stockton match will allow the Durham groundstaff a clear run to prepare Riverside for the one-day international against Sri Lanka on June 24.