Lancashire are made to battle

Durham gained a first-innings lead of 87 and then struck once with the ball to claim a slender advantage heading into the second half of their Specsavers County Championship match against Lancashire at Southport.

Paul Collingwood battled through a webbing injury on his left hand for a typically obdurate 50 as the visitors, replying to 204, recovered from 169 for six at lunch.

They were later bowled out for 291 on the stroke of tea before the Red Rose county reached close in decent order at 59 for one from 24 overs, a deficit of 28.

James Anderson had more of an impact than his England team-mate Ben Stokes, who made 21 with the bat before looping a return catch to leg-spinner Matt Parkinson.

Anderson struck twice in 16 overs, getting Adam Hickey and Collingwood, who had earlier pulled him onto the nearby railway line, caught behind deep into the afternoon by impressive debutant Tom Moores.

Anderson finished with figures of three for 58 from 22 overs in all and will be replaced by Nathan Buck from day three onwards.

The day started with Durham at 88 for three, and they lost Stokes, Scott Borthwick for 64 and Michael Richardson before lunch.

Stokes, shuffling down the pitch, fell to Parkinson’s first ball of the innings and Borthwick was beaten in the flight and bowled through the gate by Simon Kerrigan. And, in the last over of the session, Richardson was caught at slip off Kyle Jarvis.

Collingwood then shared an important 7-run stand inside 31 overs with Paul Coughlin (26) through the majority of the afternoon before the latter was bowled by Jarvis as the score fell to 240 for seven in the 86th over.

It was the first of three wickets to fall inside four overs as Anderson got Hickey and Collingwood caught behind - 250 for nine in the 89th.

Chris Rushworth and Graham Onions then added what could be a crucial 41 for the 10th wicket before the former swept Parkinson to deep backward square to wrap up the innings on the stroke of tea.

Onions then struck in the fourth over of Lancashire’s second innings when he had Tom Smith caught behind by Richardson, leaving the score at three for one.

Stokes was introduced into the attack after 10 overs, with Lancashire at 25 for one. He bowled three maidens in seven overs for 13 runs, while Borthwick’s introduction, in the 16th, saw the hosts halve the deficit with four byes and four leg byes to fine-leg.

Haseeb Hameed and Luke Procter, both strong on the drive, were the ones who gave Lancashire a late evening boost by sharing an unbroken 56. Hameed will begin day three on 24 and Procter 22.