FOR once the boot was on the other foot yesterday as Durham's full-strength team pulled off a thrilling win against a Middlesex side without any overseas players.

In easily the best one-day game at Riverside this season, Durham had to survive some heart-stopping moments to scrape home by one wicket with one ball to spare.

On his only totesport League appearance of the season, last man Stephen Harmison had to go in with eight needed and seven balls left.

Looking as composed as Tiger Woods over a four-foot putt, he lapped the two balls he faced from Jamie Dalrymple behind square for singles, leaving Gareth Breese to finish the job.

Three were needed when Breese smashed the off-spinner past square leg for his fourth four to finish on 52 not out off 56 balls.

Zimbabwean newcomer Andy Blignaut also played a key part as he went in when Durham had slumped from 104 for two to 120 for six in pursuit of the visitors' 191 for six.

Breese was in the wars in the 36th over, when a fierce drive by Blignaut hit him on the boot then he ran into the bowler, Ben Hutton. But he survived unscathed, while his left-handed partner looked unflappable in reaching 19.

The stand was worth 55 when, with 23 required off four overs Middlesex turned of off spinning all-rounders Paul Weekes and Dalrymple.

Blignaut tried to run Weekes' second ball behind square on the off side and was bowled, then Neil Killeen drove over a well-flighted yorker from Dalrymple.

The target was looking steeper at 17 off two overs, but then Breese hit Weekes wide of long-on for six, only for Mark Davies to chip to long-on with seven balls left.

Breese took a single off the last ball, then scrambled two leg byes either side of Harmison's singles before hitting the winning boundary amid much relief and jubilation.

The win kept Durham in the totesport League promotion frame while pegging back the runaway leaders, who were short of bowling.

This form of the game used to be considered the Sunday slog, but after the hurly-burly of Twenty20 it was more like the Sabbath slumber until the final drama.

The cricket was of a good quality, however, as Durham were lifted by the presence of Harmison and Paul Collingwood and two Middlesex batsmen adapted impressively to the conditions after a sticky start.

Then Marcus North put Durham well on the way to victory with a classy innings of 59 before two wickets in two balls turned the tide.

Shortly afterwards two more wickets fell in two balls, with skipper Jon Lewis suffering the misfortune of falling first ball in his benefit match.

Middlesex have lost Lance Klusener and Nantie Hayward to South African commitments, while Indian Ajit Agarkar arrived only yesterday and the Australian Board are restricting the amount Glenn McGrath will be allowed to play.

Middlesex also have injuries and had to field Sacriston lad Melvyn Betts alongside such names as Hutton, Compton, Strauss and Dalrymple.

While there was little pace in the pitch, it offered something for all the bowlers and after struggling to 58 for four in the 21st over Middlesex did very well to reach 191 for six.

Fifth wicket pair Ed Joyce and Dalrymple put on 96 in 19 overs and the left-handed Joyce remained unbeaten on 73 after marring Killeen's exemplary figures with a six over long-on in the last over.

An inside edge for four off the day's sixth ball helped Middlesex take six runs off Harmison's opening over after being put in, but they then went 20 balls without scoring.

Killeen had four maidens in his opening seven-over spell and Harmison's three bursts brought figures of 9-2-22-1, which included only two runs off the 44th over.

Middlesex had four left-handers in their top five and Killeen often made the ball bounce and leave them, while Harmison's pace and accuracy made him a handful for everyone.

He didn't bowl at Andrew Strauss, however, as his England colleague was out for a duck when he shaped to drive a ball from Killeen which nipped back in to have him lbw.

On his second and last appearance of the season for Durham, Harmison regularly beat the bat, but the breakthrough didn't come until he was rested after bowling four overs for eight runs.

With only 21 on the board after ten overs, Weekes decided to get after Davies and hit him for two fours in the 11th over before edging a catch to Andrew Pratt.

Then Ben Hutton went to drive Killeen and edged to Collingwood at second slip after making three in 29 balls.

Strauss went next, then the dangerous Owais Shah threatened to build a stand with Joyce. But having so many options at his disposal brought the best out of Lewis's captaincy and he brought Harmison back for the 17th over.

He beat Shah twice then persuaded him to attempt a pull, only for the ball to lob gently to Breese at backward square leg.

Former Oxford University captain Dalrymple, 23, has been having an excellent season and was the dominant partner in the fifth wicket stand, although both batsmen seemed content to accumulate at three an over.

When they did begin to accelerate, Dalrymple twice cut Breese for four and drove Collingwood over extra cover for four before lifting him over long-off for six.

Excellent stops, notably by Lewis and Gary Pratt, helped Durham to keep the lid on the scoring rate, but the wickets in hand enabled Middlesex to take 70 off the last ten overs.

This was despite a calculated gamble by Lewis paying off in the 40th over, when he turned to North's off spin.

The Australian took two for ten in two overs, first having Dalrymple stumped by Andrew Pratt for 58, made off 73 balls.

Nick Compton drove to long-off as Joyce did the bulk of the scoring in the last few overs. An edge off Harmison gave him only his second four and took him to 50 off 72 balls, and he added one more four plus his six off Killeen while proving very adept at picking up twos.

Blignaut bowled four overs for Durham at little more than medium pace, conceding 18 runs.

Durham sent in Phil Mustard to open with North and he edged Betts to the wicketkeeper in the second over.

Betts' remodelled run-up looked a sad indictment of the coaching which seems to have blighted his career since he left Durham.

Gone is the accelerating, enthusiastic approach which often produced fast away swing, to be replaced by something apparently designed to restrict rather than threaten.

Wicketkeeper Ben Scott stood up to him and comfortably held the catch which ended North's innings after Betts returned for the 25th over with the score on 95 for two.

North put on 72 for the second wicket with Andrew Pratt, who played well for his 29 but got in a tangle trying to work seamer Simon Cook into the off side and was bowled.

North pulled Cambridge student Chris Wright for six and added six fours in his 83-ball half-century, but his exit sparked the collapse.

Gary Pratt confidently played the next ball square on the off side and equally as confidently Collingwood went for the single. But he under-estimated Strauss's speed as his England colleague swooped from backward point and ran out Pratt.

Four overs later Collingwood fell for 18 when he tried to cut Cook and gave 22-year-old Scott, again standing up, his third catch.

Lewis was stuck on his crease as the next ball nipped back to pin him lbw, but Cook had only one more over to bowl and once that had been negotiated the seventh wicket pair ticked along merrily.

They had put on 38 when Betts returned with 34 needed off seven overs and he bowled a couple of tight overs to finish with two for 25.

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