There could be big changes at both these counties next season. Sussex will not prevent Chris Adams, their captain, from talking to Hampshire about their coaching position and Surrey are bound to overhaul their leadership if they are relegated to the second division.

Such an indignity became more likely yesterday when Surrey, desperately seeking their first win in 12 matches, could not make Sussex follow on because Saqlain Mushtaq and Murtaza Hussain, their seasoned off spinners, took only two wickets on a turning pitch where Rory Hamilton-Brown and Chris Nash, the Sussex part-timers, had picked up six.

James Benning's fielding looked like their best weapon when he made a second important breakthrough - following his direct hit from fine leg to run out Michael Yardy - by throwing down the stumps again, this time from cover, to run out the dangerous Murray Goodwin for 55.

Ollie Rayner, the nightwatchman, had to take the blame because he had called for an improbable single, but he did his best to make up for it by frustrating Surrey for 28 overs before he was caught at second slip off Matt Nicholson.

Surrey's mood did not improve when Hamilton-Brown, who left them to join Sussex last season, smacked Murtaza for two handsome straight sixes on his way to 39, but they perked up when he was caught behind off Saqlain. Andrew Hodd, also playing against his former county, went the same way against Benning.

The follow-on was a distinct possibility when Carl Hopkinson, who had batted solidly for 53 off 112 balls, played on to Jade Dernbach, but Robin Martin-Jenkins changed all that. Batting with great aplomb, he stroked an unbeaten 71 off 90 balls with nine fours and, with Jason Lewry joining him in a last-wicket stand of 57, Surrey's lead was trimmed to 127.

To make matters worse, they then lost both openers inside five overs; Scott Newman driving loosely at Martin-Jenkins to be caught behind and Stewart Walters falling leg before to Lewry before Mark Ramprakash reasserted his authority. He finished unbeaten on 36, having passed 1,000 runs in a season for the 18th time, and, with Jonathan Batty joining him in an unbroken third-wicket partnership of 64, Surrey had reached 77 for two.

Scoreboard

Surrey: First Innings 455 (M R Ramprakash 178, J N Batty 102, U Afzaal 58)

Second Innings
S A Newman c Hodd b Martin-Jenkins 5
S J Walters lbw b Lewry 8
*M R Ramprakash not out 36
†J N Batty not out 24
Extras (b 4) 4
Total (2 wkts, 25 overs) 77

Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-13.

Bowling: Lewry 6-1-17-1; Martin-Jenkins 8-3-15-1; Rayner 5-0-26-0; Hamilton-Brown 5-1-14-0; Nash 1-0-1-0.

Sussex: First Innings (overnight 97-3)
M W Goodwin run out 55
O P Rayner c Walters b Nicholson 17
C D Hopkinson b Dernbach 53
R J Hamilton-Brown c Batty b Saqlain 39
†A J Hodd c Batty b Benning 1
R S C Martin-Jenkins not out 71
C D Collymore run out 8
J D Lewry c Newman b Hussain 22
Extras (lb 4, nb 14) 18
Total (107.4 overs) 328

Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-16, 3-85, 4-108, 5-143, 6-196, 7-197, 8-242, 9-271.

Bowling: Nicholson 18-6-45-1; Dernbach 18-6-60-3; Benning 11-3-41-1; Tudor 16-5-29-0; Saqlain 29-6-102-1; Hussain 15.4-5-47-1.

Umpires: R J Bailey and J F Steele.