DURHAM must have an infatuation with players who have taken hat-tricks against them. They signed Danny Law and Vince Wells and they have just given a three-game trial in the A team to left-arm swing bowler Alamgir Sheriyar.

It was on Sheriyar's first-class debut at the Durham University ground in 1994 that he and Wells both took hat-tricks in the same match, Sheriyar completing victory by an innings and five runs by bowling Steve Lugsden.

Law's hat-trick was for Essex at Riverside in 1998, when his victims were Michael Foster, Nicky Phillips and Melvyn Betts. He took five for 46, which remained his career-best until he took six for 53 for Durham against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl in 2001.

Sheriyar, who will be 32 in November, has been almost as enigmatic as Law during a three-county career which has also taken in Worcestershire and Kent, who are now prepared to release him.

He was the country's leading wicket-taker in 1999, when he took 92, but has been on the wane since and considering that his figures for Durham's A team have been unimpressive they surely won't sign him.

A MORE likely signing is former New Zealand Test off-spinner Paul Wiseman, who took nine wickets in the A team match against Yorkshire last week.

He has a British passport, is no mean batsman, and wants to play county cricket, using an agent to put his name around.

"People ring us offering players so we thought we would take a like at him and see whether he might be of any value to us," said coach Martyn Moxon. "We hope to have a clear idea over the next couple of weeks which way we are going to go.

"There are a few players out of contract who have been offered new ones and have yet to accept. We have to make sure we take the right options according to what we can afford."

BOTH teams stayed in the St Nicholas Hotel at Scarborough, where the fire alarm went off at midnight on Friday. I am reliably informed that when the residents gathered on the pavement outside most of the Durham players were present and correct, but Yorkshire were not.

Durham skipper Mike Hussey was absent, although he was known to be in his room. Someone was just about to ring him when a team-mate suggested: "There's no need to disturb him, it's his last game on Sunday."

Perhaps Phil Mustard slept in after the disturbance and missed his breakfast because at 10.30 the following morning he broke off from the pre-match warm-ups to visit the burger van in the corner of the ground. I can reveal he takes ketchup rather than mustard with his hot dogs.

SOME nightclub chat went out on one of the local radio stations on Friday when it was reported that Yorkshire's Michael Lumb is to join Durham. He may well be unsettled, which would not have been helped by being left out against Durham, but he has a year left on his contract and his current boss, David Byas, insists he will be held to it.

STEWART Hutton, known as Lenny by his former Durham team-mates, has landed a job as the first Director of Cricket at Scarborough College, starting next month. He leaves a job at Hetton School and will also teach Information Communications Technology.

A product of the Guisborough club, Hutton played in Durham's last season of Minor cricket in 1991 and was on the first-class staff for the next seven years.

THE old quiz question about the four pairs of players with the same surname who have turned out for Durham has had to be amended recently.

To the names of Pratt (Andrew and Gary), Brown (Simon and Gary), Campbell (Sherwin and Colin) and Scott (Chris and Gary) can be added Thorp (Ashley and Callum) and Lewis (Jon and Mick).

Read more about Durham here.