Just moments after Nottinghamshire’s victory at the Kia Oval – which, barring a miracle, earned them the Rothesay County Championship title – a veteran member of Surrey raided his memory bank.

“I was here in 1959 when Surrey couldn’t beat Middlesex,” he recalled. “Then the news came through that Yorkshire had won at Hove, which made them champions and meant Surrey couldn’t win eight out of eight.”

It was a timely reminder that sport, mirroring life, goes round in circles and no period of supremacy lasts forever.

Surrey had dominated the 1950s, Stuart Surridge leading them to five successive titles from 1952-56 with Peter May adding two more. They had already shared top spot with Lancashire in 1950.

They kept it going despite supplying a sizeable quantity of players to the England side, much as they have recently through the likes of Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Gus Atkinson (among others).

“Hope to see you next year, if I’m still around,” added the ancient observer, as members made their farewells to each other following a long summer and before an even longer winter.

When a winning run ends, the question inevitably lurks: Can the formula be revived next year or is this the start of a decline?

And through Surrey’s history, many of their 23 titles County Championship have come in clusters – six in the 1890s, that 1950s domination, three in four years at the turn of the 21st century and now four in seven years, started by the 2018 success. The other two have been isolated moments of elation, in 1914 and 1971, before being sucked back into the mass of also-rans while others enjoyed top billing.

Not even Liverpool under Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley and Kenny Dalglish or Manchester United under Alex Ferguson – to borrow two examples from the world of football – could win forever, as teams that grow up together inevitably grow old together, essential components wearing out.

Micky Stewart noted that he and Ken Barrington were the youngest players in the Surrey team of the 1950s, having established themselves in 1954, and remained so in 1958, the last of the glory years, which made the rebuilding all the harder.

That process is not as clear cut in the current Surrey side. While Dan Worrall and Jordan Clark, so vital over the past three years, have been less effective with the ball this year, the age range of the side varies sufficiently for a transitional stage to be more gentle. The difficulties posed by players being pulled away by both international and franchise cricket also offer opportunities for others to gain experience. It may be highly frustrating for a county to rarely see their best players, yet it create avenues for less established squad members to have a run in the side and show what they can do.

The silver lining of the Hundred is also creating more openings for youngsters to advertise their abilities in the Metro Bank Cup 50-over competition. Deprived by both that and injuries of up to 23 players, Surrey could take some comfort in breakthrough displays by Ollie Sykes, Adam Thomas, Josh Blake and Ralphie Albert. Three of them were key in winning the Second XI Championship title last week and all have much to offer in the future.

By Richard Spiller