Gloucestershire's move into championship contention was checked by persistent rain on a miserable first day against Worcestershire at New Road. Gloucestershire, now in fourth place after beating Warwickshire, reached 37 without loss from 11.4 overs in a 50-minute session of play after lunch.
Day 2: No play due to rain.
Day 3: Leatherdale's five is career-best haul
By David Green at Worcester
Third day of four: Worcs (111-8) trail Gloucs (188) by 77 runs
WICKETS fairly clattered down here in humid conditions yesterday, with David Leatherdale's career-best five for 20 cutting down Gloucestershire for 188 and Courtney Walsh taking five for 40 as Worcestershire limped to 111 for eight.
Only Matt Windows, who top-scored for Gloucestershire with 43, and Tony Wright shaped confidently in a fourth-wicket stand of 85, after which the visitors' last seven wickets fell for 35 runs in 14 overs.
After only 11.4 overs on the first two days, yesterday's idea was for Gloucestershire to make a decent score and, following two forfeits, set Worcestershire a target today. But on a pitch that had been covered for 48 hours all that changed, though Gloucestershire reached 56 before losing their first wicket, Gregor Macmillan thin-edging to Moody.
Stuart Lampitt then bowled Tim Hancock off his pads and next ball comprehensively yorked Mark Alleyne. Wright and Windows needed some fortune thereafter, but Wright drove strongly while his partner cut productively.
After Leatherdale, who is two yards quicker than he looks, had found Wright's edge, he and Moody swept aside the rest.
Worcestershire's delight was soon modified when they found themselves 12 for three. Abdul Hafeez flicked a leg-stump half-volley to square leg before Walsh, having yorked Moody and had Philip Weston caught off bat and pad, Vikram Solanki and Gavin Haynes batted gamely without suggesting permanence.
Alleyne's swing eventually accounted for both, after which Walsh returned to dismiss Steve Rhodes, Lampitt and Richard Illingworth. But Leatherdale resisted with notable composure and survived to carry on the fight.
Day 4: Alleyne's grip slips
By Paul Weaver at Worcester
GLOUCESTERSHIRE are a tease of a county. They will flash eyes and ankles at you in early season, whisper coy promises in mid-summer and slap you in the face in September.
Once again they are encouraging their supporters with flirty suggestions and once again they will break their hearts, for even such a spirited side as this are not good enough to win the County Championship.
They finished seventh last year, the lowest position they had occupied all season, and even with Courtney Walsh back in their side and bowling well they will struggle to improve on that.
This is not to criticise them, for they are an admirable side who add up to more than the sum of their considerable parts. They also deserve credit for keeping faith with last year's captain, Mark Alleyne, and not reverting to Walsh.
There have been a number of bizarre captaincy appointments this season. Look at Hampshire, Derbyshire and Warwickshire, while Chris Adams got the job at Sussex because it was the only way of securing his services.
Alleyne has been an underrated all rounder for some years, despite the reliability of his middle-order batting and the thoughtful variation of his medium pace bowling.
He may be an under-rated captain too, even though he was out-manoeuvred by Worcestershire's Tom Moody for much of yesterday, for in a quiet way he has built a side with a single purpose.
They went into this game with the easy confidence of a fourth-placed side that, with possibly the strongest seam attack in the land, had already won three championship games. Walsh, Michael Smith, Jon Lewis and Alleyne represent a formidable attack.
Gloucestershire are likely to falter once again in the second half of the season, when pitches turn brown and dusty and seamers search in vain for the greentops of early season. Neither do they possess the quality spinners with which they could replace their faster bowlers. Their top-order batting is also vulnerable and no one can remember their last solid pair of openers; Chris Broad and Andy Stovold, perhaps.
This last game has been a strange one. After the first two days were almost completely washed out, 18 wickets fell on Friday but the rain struck again yesterday when play started 90 minutes late.
Worcestershire then batted for two overs, declared 66 runs behind, and were set a generous-looking 208 to win in 40 overs by Alleyne when Gloucestershire declared at 141 for five. Worcestershire raced to 80 without loss from 14 overs.