Wallace scores a career-best at Chester-le-Street

Glamorgan`s slim hopes of promotion into Division One evaporated under sunny skies in mid-afternoon at Chester-le-Street as the Welsh county slipped from 222-4 to 270 all out on the opening day of their Championship match against Durham at the Riverside ground.

Needing to pick up a full compliment of bonus points to remain in the promotion hunt, Glamorgan`s collapse, with the loss of 6 wickets for 48 runs, meant that they only picked up two batting points.

However, the day had begun very promisingly for Glamorgan, and after taking first use of a slow wicket, openers Jimmy Maher and Mark Wallace shared an opening stand of 127 before the Australian was dismissed shortly before lunch for 63. Wallace continued in positive mode after lunch and duly reached his second century of the summer, and his second against Durham, having hit 117 against them in August at Cardiff.

Wallace had struck 23 fours, when he was caught behind by Phil Mustard for a career-best 121, just 25 runs short of the highest ever first-class score by a Glamorgan wicket-keeper, made by Eifion Jones against Sussex at Hove in 1968.

Wallace`s first-class aggregate in 2003 now stands at 852 runs - this is the highest number of runs by a Glamorgan wicket-keeper since the Second World War, and the most since Tom Brierley aggregated 856 in 1937. In all, his tally this summer is the third highest in first-class cricket, with James Stone`s 959 runs in 1923 remaining as the club record.

Glamorgan`s innings quickly folded after Wallace`s departure, and apart from 36 by David Hemp and a pair of sixes by Matthew Maynard, none of Glamorgan`s other batsmen got to grips with the home attack, for whom spinner Graeme Bridge took 3/26 in 9 overs.

Wickets continued to fall when Durham started their reply after tea, as once again Michael Kasprowicz made inroads against the Durham batsmen. The Queenslander took 9/36 against Durham six weeks ago at Cardiff, and on his last visit to the Riverside ground he picked up 11 wickets. It didn`t take him long to add further to his tally, as with his second delivery, Jon Lewis edged Kasprowicz to Maher in the slips.

David Harrison then dismissed the dangerous Martin Love, as the Australian edged to Wallace without scoring, giving the young wicket-keeper his 200th catch in first-class cricket. Wallace soon claimed another victim as in the next over Nicky Peng edged a ball from Kasprowicz as Durham slumped to 11/3.

A partnership of 102 for the third wicket between Paul Collingwood and Gary Pratt saw Durham recover, and when bad play stopped play, the home county were 142/4, just 128 runs behind with six wickets in hand.