Yesterday morning saw me driving up the A1 in murky conditions and it was only the floodlights that allowed play to start on time but the cloud soon cleared to present the faithful with a beautiful last day of the season at The Riverside and as last year the cricket fitted the occasion.
Durham began the day with a lead of 247 and two wickets in hand, a lead that Durham supporters hoped might be extended to 300 before Surrey batted. Carse played some nice shots but Wood and Onions made only modest contributions and the visitors were set 281 to win. Game on, odds probably even until Wood struck in each of his first two overs and then Burns joined Sibley and Sangakkara in the pavilion at 11 for 3 and South Terrace Block 5 began to dream of a finish by tea. Enter Ansari and Roy, who had put on 164 in the first innings, to guide Surrey safely to lunch and well into the afternoon by which time the odds had swung in favour of the brown caps. Borthwick, whose modest haul of wickets have cost over 50 apiece this season, was brought on by Collingwood when there were at least a few runs still to play with and at 154 after a stand of 143 legspin did the trick trapping Ansari in front for 51. Borthwick dismisses Ansari, two men who will be in competition for a place in the Surrey line up next year.
Roy, who impressed me greatly in this match, and Foakes went to tea 168 for 4, 123 to get and bags of time, Surrey's to lose but first ball after tea Stokes has Roy* caught behind to set up as good as two hours of cricket as you could wish to see. Two hours in which five wickets fell, Stokes bowled at his very best, ably supported by Onions, Jennings took a catch which should really have been Borthwick's, presumably on the principle that Scotty won't be there next year,Sam Curran who had taken seven wickets in Durham's second innings hit 50 not out and shortly after half past five we lept from our seats as Onions uprooted Footitt's off stump and Durham had won by 21 runs. First class cricket at its best and a win for Durham that not only secures them a twelth successive season in the first division but leaves them in a position from which they could rise to fourth and overtake Surrey. Not bad for a county whose financial situation has prevented them from having an overseas player, who are losing two of their top three batsmen to yesterday's opponents and where for the last three months ther have been countless rumours as to who else might leave The Riverside. Chuck in the second XI championship and the final of T20 blast and you might call it not a bad season.
The icing on the cake yesterday was that it was Darlington Eddie's 80th birthday, no finer present than a win over Surrey, the downside that Our Hartlepool Correspondent, that most dedicated of Durham members, had to leave early, the chains of office dragging him back to an important engagement at Hartlepool CC.
Finally tomorrow sees the semi finals of the Yorkshire Premier League with Great Ayton (NYSD) taking on Pudsey St Lawrence at Headingley and Harrogate (Yorkshire Premier North) facing Wakefield Thornes (Yorkshire Premier South) at Scarborough. There has been some misinformation about these games but wickets are pitched at 11:00, and admission is free.
* there was some disgraceful booing of Roy whe he was dismissed yesterday, he was given not out earlier in his innings by the umpire when to many he appeared to have edged a delivery and stood his ground as he was entitled to do.
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