Talented Park steps out of the shadows

May 9 2008 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

A WEEK is a long time in politics but a night can seem like a week when it comes to a cricket pitch as Durham found as they were made to toil on the second day of their County Championship game against Lancashire.

On Wednesday, a lively Old Trafford pitch had facilitated a wonderful day of seam bowling as Durham’s batsmen failed to make the most of Mark Davies’ career best bowling figures of 7-33 and 20 wickets tumbled in just three sessions to hand Lancashire an unlikely 35-run lead.

Yesterday, however, the bowlers may as well have been bowling on a completely different strip on the sun-kissed square as only one wicket – that of Mark Chilton – fell before lunch.

By tea, Lancashire’s batsmen were rarely troubled by anything the pitch could spring at them and they had moved smoothly on to 224-3. Durham’s bowlers, hampered by a series of aches and strains, looked jaded.

Nevertheless, Durham will go into the penultimate day still believing that victory is possible. It will take a magnificent effort, but there is a grit and determination about this side which was epitomised yesterday by Garry Park.

Park is little more than a squad player at Durham, a useful middle order batsman and back-up wicket-keeper to Mustard. Yet what the plucky South African managed with the ball in his hand completely transformed Durham’s day.

The 25-year-old had only bowled seven overs in first class cricket for Durham against Sri Lanka A last season but, with captain Michael Di Venuto running out of ideas, he was given the ball just before tea. In his second over he clean-bowled Lancashire captain Stuart Law. In his third, with a touch of reverse swing, he sent England star Andrew Flintoff’s off stump spinning into the air to give the all-rounder his second duck of the match. At the end of that over, Park had figures of 2-5 from three overs, two of which were maidens and Durham were back in the match.

Park produced a wonderful direct-hit to run out opener Paul Horton, whose 108 had been the foundation for Lancashire’s second innings in the following over and off spinner Paul Wiseman, who bowled continuously from the Stretford Road end in the afternoon, picked up Luke Sutton to go with earlier victims Chilton, Mal Loye and Mohammad Yousuf.

Mitch Claydon finally got a wicket in the match, Kyle Hogg caught on the boundary by Davies, who returned to the attack to wrap up the innings.

That appeared to give Durham the chance of a famous win, but Flintoff, pride stung by his humiliations with the bat, produced a compelling argument for his immediate return to the national side with three late wickets.

Stoneman and the out-of-form Kyle Coetzer both went early and England one-day captain, Paul Collingwood, who has failed to make a single meaningful contribution with the bat during his short spell with his county before departing again for international duty, went for just one, albeit to a gem of a delivery.