COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION ONE, Emirates Ground: CLOSE OF PLAY, DAY THREE: Durham 286 & 171-2, Somerset 426 Somerset 8pts, Durham 5pts Match scorecard
Somerset's James Hildreth clips the ball away for a boundary on his way to 105 at Chester-le-Street
Michael di Venuto hit an unbeaten 84 as Durham held up Somerset's charge towards a first County Championship title at Chester-le-Street.
Somerset had resumed day three on 226-4 and saw James Hildreth complete his seventh first-class century of the summer as they were all out for 426.
That gave Somerset maximum bonus points and a first innings lead of 140.
But Di Venuto hindered Somerset's push for victory and the title as Durham reached the close on 171-2.
With Nottinghamshire again frustrated by rain and Yorkshire's clash with Kent finely poised, Somerset remain in pole position to wrap up the title on the final day but early wickets on the final morning will certainly ease their nerves.
They certainly wasted little time in banking maximum batting bonus points, reaching 400 with seven wickets down and 16.3 of the 110 overs remaining - becoming the first side to bag maximum batting points at Durham all season in the process.
Central to that was Hildreth, who initially played the anchor as Peter Trego and Jos Buttler went for their shots.
Trego, 33 overnight, reached his half-century off 46 balls and went on to make 69 before being bowled by Liam Plunkett to give Durham their first breakthrough and end a stand worth 104 with Hildreth.
Buttler added a further 64 with him before Ben Harmison trapped both Buttler and Ben Phillips leg before to the last two balls before lunch.
Hildreth, then on 72, survived Harmison's hat-trick ball after the resumption and received good support from Alfonso Thomas as he reached his century with his 13th boundary.
Thomas hit the runs that took Somerset past 400 soon afterwards before Durham's West Indian trialist Ruel Brathwaite knocked out Hildreth's leg stump, saw Thomas chop on to his stumps and had Murali Kartik caught at third man to dismiss the visitors for 426.
Somerset were boosted by the early capture of Mark Stoneman, lbw to Phillips, with the score on 33, but Gordon Muchall put on 113 with Di Venuto to bat Durham into the lead.
Trego bowled Muchall just before the close, but Di Venuto, who passed 1,000 championship runs for the season on 37, will be Somerset's major obstacle on the final day.
BBC Radio Newcastle's Martin Emmerson reflects on the state of the game: "Somerset may be in poll position in the race for the title but the current holders Durham claim they are out to spoil their party.
"They now have a slender lead but hope to bat Somerset out of the game on the final day.
"The visitors must still be favourites to win it though. However, amid rumours of possible contrived results at Old Trafford and Headingley, there are likely to be lots of twists and turns on what will be a fantastic final day to the season."
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