Hundreds by Darren Stevens and Geraint Jones and a belligerent 92 off 79 balls from big-hitting South African Justin Kemp gave LV County Championship Division Two leaders Kent a sound platform to chase their seventh win of the season as Surrey continued to crumble on day three at Canterbury.

Having secured a handy first-innings lead of 94, Kent's weakened attack set about reducing the visitors to 148 for five by stumps.

Surrey are effectively six wickets down, however, as their leading run-getter Mark Ramprakash will take no further part in the game or the

campaign after breaking his thumb when batting on Saturday.

Without 39-year-old Ramprakash, who has amassed 1,350 first-class runs at an average of 90 this summer, Surrey go into the final day staring

defeat in the face having secured only a modest 54-run lead with just

four more men left to bat.

The Brown Caps lost both openers in the space of five balls early in their reply when Michael Brown (five) offered a bat-pad catch to silly point against off-spinner James Tredwell then, in the next over, Jonathan Batty (23) pushed hesitantly at right-arm seamer Phil Edwards to go leg before wicket.

After tea Tredwell struck again, having Stewart Walters (six) snaffled at short-leg off pad and then gloves and, two runs later, Matt Spriegel had his off-stump pegged back by Edwards to make it 57 for four.

Surrey stopped the rot with a fifth-wicket stand worth 78 in 18 overs between the experienced Usman Afzaal (44) and Chris Schofield that also

wiped out the first-innings deficit.

Tredwell switched to his favoured Pavilion End to trap Afzaal leg before wicket, but Schofield (33) and Stuart Meaker (seven) at least survived the

nine remaining overs to take the game into its final day.

Sunny conditions and a fairly benign Canterbury pitch allowed Kent's middle order-players to make hay earlier in the day against a

lacklustre Brown Caps' attack.

Stevens and Jones lead from the front with a stand worth 183 in 39 - comfortably Kent's best for the fourth-wicket this summer.

Jones cantered past 150 for the first time in his career from 246

balls with 21 fours and a six but a break in concentration, as the players trooped off for five minutes' drizzle, led to the right-hander's demise.

Three balls after the resumption Jones, caught on the crease by a Meaker leg-cutter, had his off-stump plucked out for a career-best 156 in almost five-and-a-half hours.

Stevens suffered with the nervous 90s and was fortunate to receive lives from successive balls. On 90 he saw Walters put down a one-handed

diving slip chance off Jade Dernbach which led to a single then - to his next ball on strike - Stevens chipped a simple chance to mid-off against Tim Linley only for Pedro Collins to down a sitter.

To rub salt into Surrey wounds, they also conceded five penalty runs when Walters picked up a glove discarded by Jonathan Batty and put it on to

collect the wicketkeeper's throw to the stumps.

Stevens reached his 111-ball century with 17 fours and six as he and

Kemp counter-attacked against the second new ball by taking 51 in five

overs, including 21 from 12 balls from Collins.

Stevens went meekly when edging an attempted drive to slip to become part of a three-for-90 return for Chris Schofield then Kemp, after clattering the leg-spinner for three sixes, ran himself out eight runs short of a ton when attempting a tight second to Schofield out at deep point.

The willing Meaker finished with three for 114, but Kent were already scenting success having posted maximum batting bonus points and a useful lead.