IT'S a sad reality that, no matter how much they might profess their love of home, the lure of money and the bright lights of London can be irresistible to North-East youngsters.

For Gazza and Chris Waddle, read Mark Stoneman and Scott Borthwick. Some of us are horrified that they can forsake Durham for Surrey (anyone but Surrey), but we should not be surprised.

The news which Durham fans had dreaded for some time – that Borthwick is going – was confirmed yesterday in a very brief statement by the club, which said he had rejected a three-year contract.

As Durham continue to slash their wage bill under pressure from the ECB, Surrey continue to use their wealth to build a squad to rival Yorkshire's.

They pinched three from Worcestershire a few years ago – Batty, Solanki and Davies – and much good it did them. Chris Adams copped the flak for their failures, but under Alec Stewart and Michael di Venuto they are becoming a major force.

They have a spin-bowling all-rounder in Zafar Ansari who is considered an England prospect. Will Borthwick have to compete with him for a place, or will he get in ahead of Stoneman purely as a batsman?

To lose one was bad enough for Durham; to lose both is almost unbearable with so little batting in reserve. It is also grossly unfair that after all the work put into bringing players through from the academy another county gets the benefit with no compensation.

The Durham members will now want to know how Durham's financial situation has reached the point where they can't hang on to their players.

It should be pointed out, however, that the money on offer was good enough for Keaton Jennings, who appreciates what Durham have done for him.

They cannot offer more because the ECB are concerned their expenditure is too big a proportion of their turnover. In their efforts to contol the situation it is even rumoured that the ECB will appoint a new Durham chairman.

Things were not good when Clive Leach took the chair in 2004. Under his stewardship a glorious peak was reached with five trophies in seven seasons. But building the team and the stadium was done at a cost, which has turned out to be excessive.

The ECB must take their share of the blame and it's only fair that they should help a club who have done far more for English cricket than Surrey in recent years.