Durham face a huge fight to gain anything from the final day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley.
It was a day of supremacy for the Champions who ran through Durham’s first innings with the second new ball to gain a lead of 195 and then racked up 225 for two before declaring.
Adam Lyth hit an unbeaten 114 to top 1,000 Championship runs for the season, and Alex Lees struck 88 in an opening partnership worth 185.
It was so murky when Durham resumed their first innings in the morning that Yorkshire opened up with two spinners but the light improved rapidly and wickets came as soon as the new ball was taken.
Jack Brooks pinned Graham Clark lbw for 25 and Ryan Sidebottom bowled the resolute Jack Burnham for one shy of a deserved half century, an innings which spanned 154 balls and contained five boundaries.
Brooks dismissed Michael Richardson and Ryan Pringle in quick succession as three wickets went down in 16 balls and although Graham Onions on-drove Sidebottom for a big six, followed by two edged fours to bring up a second batting point, the end was not far away.
Tim Bresnan had Barry McCarthy caught behind and Sidebottom wrapped things up by plucking out Onions’ off-stump.
Yorkshire chose not to enforce the follow-on and during the afternoon Lyth and Lees picked up runs steadily.
Lees beat Lyth to the 50 mark and by tea the openers had marched Yorkshire on to 151 without loss.
The opener seemed certain of a record century in each innings on the ground but he was caught behind for 88 from 138 balls with five fours and two sixes.
Gary Ballance stuck a rapid 20 before playing Pringle into his stumps at which point Yorkshire declared, leaving Durham with a difficult period in which to bat on a sunny evening.
They were soon put under the cosh when Mark Stoneman chipped a catch to mid-off and then in his next over Keaton Jennings was caught behind.
And there was another wicket before the day was out as Steven Patterson, not on the field in the morning after returning home for family matter, trapped Burnham lbw.
Durham were 31/3 and Onions came in as nightwatchman to see out the last five overs with Borthwick.
Close, Day Two: Durham (205/4; Borthwick 53) trail Yorkshire (460; Lees 132) by 255 runs
Durham showed stiff resistance with the bat on the second day of the Specsavers County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley.
Closing on 205/4 with Yorkshire leading by 255, the visitors have plenty of hard work left to do if they are yet to deny the title-holders but made good inroads on the first innings total.
Keaton Jennings and Mark Stoneman offered up another 50 opening stand, the third in a row, while Scott Borthwick reached another Championship 50.
But there is still plenty of work to be done by the unbeaten Jack Burnham & co, with the 106 runs required to avoid the follow-on tomorrow’s first target.
Stoneman played some handsome drives at the start of Durham’s reply and he had made 38 to Jennings’ 14 when he was out at 56 in the 11th over, edging Brooks to second slip where Adam Lyth held a fast catch moving smartly to his right.
Steven Patterson joined the attack and his first four balls were hit for 14 by Jennings but they were exactly half the runs the seamer was to conceded in his ten over spell which also brought the wicket of Jennings, caught by wicketkeeper Andrew Hodd.
Jennings and Scott Borthwick had added 57 for the second wicket, Borthwick reaching 7,000 first class runs when he was on 36, and it was soon after tea that Lehmann let Burnham off the hook.
Borthwick’s half-century came off 93 balls with eight fours but three runs later he fell to another good catch by Lyth.
When Paul Collingwood had his leg-bail trimmed by Tim Bresnan, Durham were 165/4 but Burnham and Graham Clark dug in until the close of play, reaching 34* and 17* respectively.
Yorkshire’s aim when they began the day was to try and collect maximum batting bonus points but they fell just short on 392/7.
Bresnan went early in the day, his off-stump uprooted by Chris Rushworth, but Azeem Rafiq was in lively mood and a flurry of boundaries from the off-spinner kept the score ticking over.
But Rafiq and Brooks attacked and it was only when Rafiq became too adventurous and stepped down the pitch to Borthwick that he departed, stumped for 45 with six boundaries.
Brooks lofted Borthwick over cow corner for six but in going for another big hit he edged Collingwood into his stumps for 36, having also struck five fours.
Close, Day One: Yorkshire (341/5; Lees 132) vs Durham
An injury-depleted Durham side took five wickets on a tough opening day of the Specsavers County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley.
Despite an early breakthrough, Yorkshire opener Alex Lees struck 132 to put the hosts in command ahead of Day Two.
With Stuart Poynter taken ill overnight and Michael Richardson dislocating a finger, Durham captain Paul Collingwood spent a large part of the day acting as an emergency wicketkeeper.
Richardson returned late in the day before Chris Rushworth bagged the wicket of Jake Lehmann with the new ball.
But with five wickets still in hand, the title-chasing hosts are on top after the first day of play.
In humid conditions with a 10:30am start, Collingwood’s decision to bowl without a toss looked vindicated inside the first four overs.
Graham Onions dismissed Adam Lyth in his second over as the left-hander fended the quick bowler to Keaton Jennings at gully.
But the ensuing stand of 163 between Lees and Gary Ballance put the Yorkshiremen back in control of proceedings.
Collingwood was brought upon to bowl and saw his first ball hit for six before taking the gloves off Richardson later in the morning.
And his outstretched left hand proved enough to dismiss England’s Ballance for 71, taking the catch to hand Barry McCarthy his sole wicket of the day.
Skipper Andrew Gale scored three boundaries in 17 before shuffling across the crease to be bowled around his legs by Onions.
Lees, who scored a big ton in a Second XI fixture between the sides, then went to his maximum but could not see it through until the new ball, gifting a return catch to Ryan Pringle.
Lehmann, son of ex-Yorkshire and Australia player Darren, passed 50 before succumbing to Rushworth but an unbroken stand of 33 between Andy Hodd and Tim Bresnan saw them to the close in a strong position.