DURHAM coach Martyn Moxon is hoping his team's superb start to the season will help them forget their Riverside phobia when they start their four-day match against Worcestershire today.

Other than Martin Love, only Gary Pratt in the middle of the 2003 season, has scored a home championship hundred for Durham in the last three years.

There were eight centuries by visitors last season, so not all the blame could be laid on the pitches, although a decision was taken to re-lay four of them last September.

Durham have added Victoria paceman Mick Lewis, the temporary replacement for Ashley Noffke, to their squad. But as long as Steve Harmison has recovered from a bout of flu, the only way Lewis could get into the team after the innings and 216 run win at Grace Road would be at the expense of Gareth Breese if Durham decided they didn't need a spinner.

Breese was one of those who suffered at Riverside last season, totalling 181 runs in 14 innings and generally looking much more comfortable away from home.

"If we show the same technique as we did at Leicester there's no reason why we can't make runs at Riverside," said Moxon. "The pitch there was not dissimilar in that the new ball made indentations and the ball seamed off those as the pitch dried.

"We'll be stressing it's the same for both sides and we can't afford to go into the game with any negative thoughts."

Worcestershire will have Sri Lankan left-arm swing bowler Chaminda Vaas making his debut, while their other overseas man, South African Zander de Bruyn, has yet to arrive.

They have become the first county to take advantage of a loan arrangement by bringing another left-armer, Alamgir Sheriyar, back from Kent for a month.

All-rounder David Leatherdale drops out of the side which thrashed Derbyshire last week to make way for Vaas, who played for Sri Lanka against Durham at Riverside in 2002.

Phil Mustard made 75 on his first-class debut in that match and Paul Collingwood made 190. With limited opportunity, he has not made a first-class hundred since and will be anxious to put that right.

Vaas is here until July, when Shoaib Akhtar takes over. But as Durham will have played Worcestershire home and away by then they will not have to face their former colleague.

Vaas, 31, arrived on Monday, fresh from Sri Lanka's series in New Zealand, where he took six wickets in the last Test.

Durham (from): M E K Hussey, J J B Lewis, P D Collingwood, G J Muchall, D M Benkenstein, N Peng, G R Breese, P Mustard, L E Plunkett, M Davies, S J Harmison, M Lewis, G Onions.

Worcestershire: V S Solanki (capt), S D Peters, S C Moore, G A Hick, B F Smith, G J Batty, D J Pipe, W P U J C Vaas, M S Mason, D H Wigley, A Sheriyar