Richard Montgomerie scored his fourth century of the season as Sussex chased quick runs on the final day of the Championship match against Middlesex.

The county's in-form opener raised his aggregate for the season to 899 by making 116, his first hundred at Lord's, before he was bowled by off-spinner Paul Weekes attempting an ugly mow over mid-wicket.

Montgomerie faced 301 balls and batted for ten minutes shy of six hours. He hit 12 boundaries with three of them coming after he had reached his century in the fifth over of the day with a single off Weekes.

Sussex, who had an overnight lead of 214, lost three more wickets in extending their advantage beyond 300 in the first 90 minutes this morning as a lunchtime declaration loomed.

Bas Zuiderent was first to go, well caught by Jamie Hewitt at mid on for 56 trying to hit Middlesex skipper Angus Fraser over the top. The Dutchman had helped Montgomerie put on 124 in 58 overs for the second wicket.

With Phil Tufnell nursing a muscle strain and unable to bowl, Weekes shouldered the slow bowling responsibilities. He claimed a second victim in the 17th over of the day when Sussex skipper Chris Adams reverse-swept him straight into the hands of first slip.

And Umer Rashid's poor form continued when he fell just three, brilliantly caught by Robin Weston off Fraser to leave Sussex 292-6.

If anything the pitch has got more docile as the game has progressed. There was some slow turn to assist Phil Tufnell and Paul Weekes yesterday but the Middlesex bowlers found it hard work.

The two spinners bowled in tandem for 23 overs during mid-afternoon, mostly to defensive fields and it was not the greatest passage of play this great ground has ever witnessed.

For 75 minutes before tea Montgomerie was virtually becalmed, scoring just five singles and a two.

Not that he or his team will mind. Once again the openers have given Sussex the ideal platform and it is no surprise that the purple patch they are enjoying has coincided with the county's best run of Championship results for five years.

The large contingent of Sussex supporters who headed to St John's Wood yesterday will just hope it continues.

Their century stand came up in 2hrs 25mins, Goodwin accelerating after lunch to reach his second fifty of the match from 97 balls with five boundaries, the best of them an impeccably-timed straight drive off Tim Bloomfield which was the shot of a man clearly enjoying some of the best form of his career.

The Zimbabwean's eighth half-century took his Championship aggregate to 930 runs when Tufnell struck in the 44th over, Goodwin chopping his arm ball onto the stumps after making 61 off 125 balls in 2hrs 41mins with seven fours.

Montgomerie cut out the risky shots but duly reached his fourth fifty of the season shortly after tea when he collected his first boundary for 40 overs. He clearly enjoyed the experience because he drove Bloomfield's next ball sweetly through the covers for another one. Suddenly the shackles were broken and, as Bloomfield struggled with his line and length, Sussex's second wicket pair began to up the tempo.

Zuiderent suffered desperate mis-fortune when in the first innings when a full blooded drive rebounded off short leg into the wicketkeeper's hands and he seems determined not to miss out a second time on his first appearance at Lord's.

He is normally a nervous starter and was almost run out by Angus Fraser's throw from mid on when he got off the mark but as he gained in confidence he started to punish anything loose especially when Fraser turned to seam again and the ball began to come nicely onto the bat.

The fifty partnership was raised in 77 minutes and it took just 52 more to take the stand into three figures. Zuiderent effectively hit Bloomfield, whose 12 overs cost 50 runs, out of the attack with some meaty off drives.

Fraser clearly felt he should save himself for more responsive pitches, bowling just 13 overs either side of lunch. Neither Bloomfield or Jamie Hewitt offered much of a threat in his absence and with Tufnell off the field and unable to bowl after tea Sussex were able to score with slightly more freedom after grinding out 91 between lunch and tea.

Earlier, James Kirtley and Jason Lewry, armed with the new ball after just two overs in the morning, took the last five Middlesex wickets for 54 in 14 overs to restrict the table-toppers to a lead of just three runs.

Robin Weston and wicketkeeper David Nash had wrested the initiative from Sussex during the final session on Saturday and Nash reached his fourth half-century of the season in the third over of the day off 128 balls with three fours.

But Nash had not added to his score when he was deceived by a slower ball in Kirtley's next over which he drove straight back to the bowler who took a good catch at waist height. The sixth wicket partnership was worth 108 runs. Sussex now had an end to attack and it did not take them long to start making inroads into Middlesex's lengthy tail. Hewitt's off stump was knocked out of the ground by a Lewry inswinger in the left-armer's fourth over and Weston's vigil was ended by Kirtley when he nibbled at a ball which held its line outside off stump.

Weston had batted for 4hrs 48mins, faced 197 balls for his 83, hitting ten fours and in six innings since he won back his place a month ago the former Derbyshire man has scored 367 runs.

His departure meant Middlesex were still 18 runs adrift and the chances of them establishing a first innings lead looked slim when Lewry knocked Bloomfield's off pole out of the turf in the next over.

But Tufnell was able to crack two cover boundaries off Lewry which better batsmen than one of the most celebrated No. 11s in cricket would have been proud of before Kirtley ended the fun when Fraser got a thick edge to second slip.

Lewry finished with 4-103 while Kirtley's three wickets gave him an overdue reward for some consistently hostile fast bowling. He now has 31 Championship wickets, 17 more than at this stage last season. The bad news for county batsmen is that Sussex's vice-captain normally gets better in the second half of the season.

Adam Gilchrist last night apologised to an angry Essex crowd for putting the Ashes before spectators as he oversaw a tedious stalemate at Chelmsford.

The stand-in Australia captain pleaded guilty as charged of being "greedy" in giving his team the right preparation for Thursday's first Test at the expense of providing a watchable spectacle on the last day of the match against Essex.

Gilchrist's team were 362 ahead with eight second-innings wickets intact at start of play. But instead of making some sort of a game of it by declaring in good time, Gilchrist did so only after his team had racked up 569-9 and a lead of 743 with five individual half-centuries.