City came into the game on the back of a remarkable 19 match unbeaten run, their last defeat being at the beginning of January.

Whitley knew that only a win would keep alive their chances of taking runners-up position, and they could hardly have had a more daunting task against a side full of confidence having broken the Northern League points scoring record after reaching 102 points for the season and beaten only three times in the league.

The visitors were quickly into their stride with accurate, incisive passing, and with ten minutes played they might have taken the lead but John Toft's shot was deflected wide.

Whitley then went close when Mark Minto almost reached a through ball from Lee Kerr but then Durham retaliated with Tommy English racing clear down the left but Terry Burke made an excellent save with his feet.

The game was flowing rapidly from end to end with both sides attacking at every opportunity.

With 21 minutes played, it was Whitley who scored the crucial opening goal when Minto's cross into the goalmouth took a slight deflection and Paul Chow left keeper John Mohan stranded with the faintest of touches as the ball flew across the face of goal and into the far corner of the net.

Whitley stepped up the pressure and six minutes later went two up when Kerr and Robson set up an attack which cut open the Durham defence and saw Minto presented with a great chance ten yards from goal and he accepted the opportunity well, drilling a first time shot past Mohan.

Whitley were well in control at this stage and just past the half hour Chris Moore's cross from the right was just too high for both Kerr and Minto.

A moment of comedy on 37 minutes almost resulted in a third goal when Mohan mis-hit a goal kick after seeming to be distracted by a horn blown by a spectator.

The ball went straight to Kerr whose shot went inches past the post with the keeper out of his ground.

Durham gradually got back in the game and shortly before half-time, Burke did well to push a header from Steven Richardson wide.

Two minutes into added time, City pulled a goal back when a well taken free kick rebounded off the base of the post and Richard Smith reacted quickly, stabbing the ball home from close range.

The game continued in the same entertaining style after the break with Durham anxious to maintain their unbeaten run to the end of the season, but Whitley were in no mood to surrender their lead.

Just past the hour, Moore rattled the post with a superb 20-yard shot that had Mohan beaten all ends up, then Damon Robson, who was once again having a great game in midfield, forced the keeper to fingertip a shot over the bar.

Kerr then tried his luck but saw an effort headed over the bar by defender Lewis Dodds.

An opportunist strike by Kerr from 25 yards out almost produced a spectacular goal when he lobbed the ball just over after Mohan had raced to the edge of his area leaving the goal unguarded.

Durham created a few anxious moments for Whitley in the closing stages but this was a game when every member of the team played their part.

Brian Rowe, who captained the side in what may well have been his last game before retirement, set the example while others to shine in defence were David Coulson and Anthony Woodhouse.

Both teams received a standing ovation at the final whistle by an appreciative crowd after a game that was an excellent advertisement for Northern League football.

Whitley's victory extended a remarkable sequence of results at Hillheads where they are unbeaten in 16 games, having won all but one of their fixtures since the beginning of November.

Whitley Bay: Burke, Rowe, Minto, Woodhouse, Coulson, Dugdale (Graham 53 mins), Moore, Robson, Kerr, Chow (Picton 65 mins), Robinson (Taylor 53 mins).

The victory over the champions lifted Whitley into second place but on Wednesday evening Consett beat Newcastle Benfield 2-0 in their final game to take the runners-up spot, one point ahead of Whitley.