YORKSHIRE claimed the extra half hour at Riverside yesterday and went on to crush Durham by 320 runs to register the sixth biggest runs margin win in the club's history.

It was their second consecutive Championship victory and they headed back down the A1 with 20 points in the bag and their bid for promotion to the First Division firmly established again.

Just as importantly, it gave them a massive boost ahead of next Wednesday's Roses clash at Old Trafford in the quarter finals of the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy.

Even though Durham grabbed the headlines earlier in the season by making 453-9 to beat Somerset, they had virtually no chance of climbing a bigger mountain still and making the 535 which Yorkshire had set them.

No side has ever got even close to such a challenge, the best winning total against them in the fourth innings of a Championship match being Gloucestershire's 392-4 at Bristol in 1948.

Yorkshire resumed in the morning on 156-4 and the situation was tailor-made for Darren Lehmann, unbeaten on 15, to set out his stall and play a typically flamboyant innings.

Having been dropped the previous evening when only two, he made Durham pay with stunning and mischevious shots all round the wicket as he rapped out his first century of the season and his 20th since joining Yorkshire.

By the time he smacked a ball from Mark Davies to Nicky Peng at mid-wicket he had dashed on to 120 from just 130 deliveries while lashing 17 fours and three sweetly-timed sixes.

Yorkshire looked as if they were about to mop up Durham quickly as Jon Lewis fenced at Steve Kirby in his second over to give Simon Guy a simple catch and at 23 Gordon Muchall had a rush of blood and slammed Nick Thornicroft high and straight to Lehmann at mid-on.

But the best of Durham's resistance then came from Marcus North and Paul Collingwood who each weighed in with half-centuries in a third wicket partnership of 119 in 33 overs. They were helped by two dropped catches, Phil Jaques putting down a sitter at slip from Collingwood off Richard Dawson's second delivery and North finding the boundary off the gloves of Guy who tried to 'poach' a catch in front of first slip.

North was finally bowled for 59 by one which kept low from the persevering Kirby and the floodgates were open, Peng being caught by Phil Jaques to bring Lehmann a wicket and, in the space of three balls from Dawson, Collingwood was caught sweeping for a plucky 65 and Gary Pratt perished lbw.

Dawson then dropped a diving chance at square leg off Thornicroft before Gareth Breese had scored but the Jamaican was lbw to the first ball of a spell from Craig White and Yorkshire claimed the extra half hour at 189-7.

The end came quickly, Andy Pratt and Neil Killeen playing on to White and Dawson respectively before last man Davies slogged Dawson to Anthony McGrath to give the off-spinner 4-75 and match figures of 9- 115.

White, who is now leading Yorkshire with determination and conviction, said: "The last two weeks have been fantastic for us. This latest win was the result of a fantastic team effort and we achieved it by keeping things simple. We have bowled to a plan and it has brought its rewards.

"Darren Lehmann is just brilliant and he gets better and better. To have a world class batsman who can also bowl like he can is just wonderful, particularly as he has a great cricketing brain."

Updated: 11:03 Friday, June 11, 2004