Matt Prior’s superb 126 not out against the West Indies at Lord’s on Friday did more than justify his inclusion in the team ahead of Paul Nixon, the crowd favourite. It was a big slap on the back for the oft-maligned selectors, who in recent years have got a lot more right than they are given credit for.

Prior was the third member of this England batting line-up to score a hundred on debut within the last three years. Andrew Strauss notched a century against New Zealand at Lords in 2004 and was on course for another in the second innings before Nasser Hussain ran him out, while Alastair Cook, having been drafted in as a replacement on the tour of India, racked up 104 not out in the second innings at Nagpur after scoring 60 in the first.

These impressive debuts are in stark contrast to some of the one-cap wonders of a previous era. Top county players such as Mark Benson, Andy Lloyd, John Stephenson and Alan Wells, to name but a few, all came and went in the blink of an eye without the opportunity to do justice to their talents.

This was in the dark days of international selection, when a player would get thrown a Test – usually the last at the Oval – knowing that a great performance could earn them a tour and an international career, while a poor one would see them packed back off to county cricket with their tail between their legs. Rarely does such pressure bring the best out of players.

The arrival of David Graveney as chairman of selectors saw a change for the better, especially when working with Duncan Fletcher, who was keen on loyalty and continuity. Even the likes of Usman Afzaal and Ed Smith, who were discarded relatively quickly, had three Tests to demonstrate their worth. Peter Moores will be keen to give the players who come into the new regime as much opportunity as possible, as well as convey a feeling that they are there on merit and have the full backing of the management.

Prior, who admittedly bristles with self-belief at the best of times, is a case in point. As he smashed the West Indies’ bowling attack all over Lord’s, he had the look of a man who knew his time had come. He had been picked as England’s No 1 keeper, by a coach whose backing of him was unequivocal, knowing he would get a run in the side. We saw a very different Prior to the one who played as a batsman in England’s one-day side a couple of years ago, when, despite 12 opportunities, he never looked at ease.

One only has to look at the fate this week of Owais Shah to know what insecurity can do to a player. In contrast to Prior, Shah has known that the Lord’s Test could well be his only opportunity to impress this summer. The spectre of Michael Vaughan has loomed large all week at HQ and Shah looked like he was trying too hard to get a big score before the England captain returns.

Some commentators said Shah looked nervy and fidgety when batting. They may have been seeing him for the first time and taken his strange mannerisms as a sign of being intimidated by the big stage. Actually, Shah has looked like that for a number of years. His demeanour is not relaxed at the crease but he is an incredible player, who has the ability to perform at the highest level if given an extended opportunity. Unfortunately, he might have to wait some time.

Back to school for wayward bowlers

The injury to Matthew Hoggard at Lord’s raises the intriguing possibility of Graham Onions being given a Test debut. James Anderson would be the more obvious choice given he was in the last squad, but one school of thought – and I’m from that school – is that both Anderson and Saj Mahmood need to play week in week out for Lancashire to get some overs in their legs and a better understanding of their methods away from the spotlight of international cricket.

Both have the ability to enjoy long careers with England but they have not been helped by being in and out of the side. They will know they need to improve their consistency and the best place to work on your bread-and-butter skills is in the county environment.

Onions played the whole of last season for Durham, taking 54 wickets, and his well-timed 8 for 101 against Warwickshire suggests he has trained on. He is an attacking bowler, who is always at you as a batsman, and would slot in easily alongside Steve Harmison, Liam Plunkett and Paul Collingwood, his county colleagues.

Reward counties for young talent

On the county scene, it was great this week to see the emergence of James Harris. The fast bowler from Glamorgan became the youngest player, at 17, to take ten wickets in a first-class match. He produced match figures of 12 for 118 in only his second championship match, a rain-affected draw with Gloucestershire at Bristol.

Glamorgan have been the whipping boys of the county game over the last few years but have adhered strictly to a policy of producing their own players rather than opting for Kolpak or non-England qualified players. Harris would not have got his opportunity at most other counties, many of which operate a less principled policy of selection and England might have remained unaware of his talents.

The ECB have been relatively powerless to stop the influx of non-England qualified players, yet this should not stop them from rewarding counties when they do unearth such a gem. Perhaps they could set aside £100,000 for the county who does the most for England cricket or £50,000 for the young find of the season.