The conveyor belt of talent at Surrey continues to revolve. Yesterday, the Oval outfit’s latest find, Scott Newman, made an impressive start to his first-class career. The only thing that did not go to plan was the 22-year-old falling one run short of a debut hundred.

An opening stand of 198 between Newman and Ian Ward combined with Alistair Brown’s second championship century in as many games took Surrey to 410 for five by the close, putting them 220 ahead of Hampshire. But the day will be remembered chiefly for Scott Newman’s vigorous 99 in 168 deliveries.

If Newman, who has scored over 1,800 runs and seven hundreds in second eleven cricket this summer, was suffering from nerves they did not show as he dispatched the visitors’ attack to all parts with a wide range forceful strokes.

In the tradition of Edrich, Butcher snr, Clinton, Bicknell, Butcher jnr and Ward, the home side’s newest recruit at the top of the order is a left-hander. Although he rode his luck at times it finally ran out in the 56th over when Neil Mallender felt he should at least have offered a stroke to James Tomlinson.

After establishing Surrey’s highest first wicket partnership for nearly two years, both of the openers were out in the space of ten balls. Ward, who made a chanceless 87 in 204 minutes, joined his partner back in the dressing room when Shaun Udal’s twentieth over brought him his long-awaited first victim to a catch at slip.

The 33-year-old off spinner, who had three chances to dispose of Scott Newman, including one off his own bowling, had a respectable first session. After lunch, however, he conceded 105 runs in 22 overs. Introduced as early as the ninth over of the innings, he was unable to profit as Saqlain Mushtaq and Ian Salisbury had on day one and was hit out of the ground a total of six times.

Three maximums came from the flashing blade of Alistair Brown who did what he does best - kicking a tired attack when it is down. It would be interesting to know what Tony Brown, the ECB’s pitch liaison officer, made of it all. Given a watching brief after “excessive turn” had been reported to Lord’s on Thursday evening, the only thing he watched was Surrey compile their seventh total this campaign in excess of 400.

Surrey’s third, fourth and fifth wickets were all the result of attacking strokes gone wrong. Nadeem Shahid and Adam Hollioake were both caught off miscued pulls. Shahid’s went to straight mid-on while Hollioake’s looped to gully where Neil Johnson, jogging around from slip, took the catch. Sandwiched between them was Mark Ramprakash’s dashing innings of 38, which ended when the former Middlesex man tried to emulate Brown, who had just lifted Hamblin and Udal for two sixes in three deliveries.

Alistair Brown went on to post his fifty off 43 balls and three figures in 135 minutes off 104 deliveries.

He found an unswerving ally in Jonathan Batty, who looked good for his batting average of forty. As he approaches six hundred championship runs it is beyond the point of his good form being merely a flash in the pan. The cover drive and the cut are now much in evidence when the 28-year-old wicketkeeper is plying his other trade.

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