If Canterbury is the oldest of festival weeks, Cheltenham is arguably the most decorous. So popular, indeed, that it is a wonder Gloucestershire do not play here more often rather than at Bristol, where the crowds are thin and the old orphanage casts a pall over the ground on the most sunlit of days.

For a county that has not won a championship match since last September, they did not fare too badly, either, on account of Marcus North making 98 and David Brown, on his first championship appearance of the season, 83.

As John Light, the Gloucestershire chairman, pointed out, had the ECB chosen to introduce a conference system in the county championship, the festival would disappear. All this and some fitting words before the start of play from the great Tom Graveney, who played for both counties before choosing to live in Cheltenham. The appreciation in the marquees and in front of the Victorian chapel after that was for North, who repelled two impressive spells from Kabir Ali, who finished with six for 94, and some pretty hostile bowling from Simon Jones, who came on first change and who surely will be an England cricketer again before too long.

North drove busily and dextrously against the quicker bowlers and took to the off spin of Gareth Batty. The most intriguing innings, though, was played by Brown, who is the brother of Michael, of Hampshire, and who surprisingly, given that Gloucestershire are a struggling side, had not been given a game before this season.

Dropped at first slip off Jones when he had made 34 and then by Batty at gully when he had 55, Brown responded by striking the off spinner for six to long-on and reached his career best score with 12 fours by the time he was yorked by Imran Arif.

At one stage Gloucestershire had slumped to 110 for five through Kabir gaining some away swing and Jones beating Steve Snell for pace. They did not look, in all honesty, a competent batting side, yet North, who has been out for 96 and 98, held them together, even though he was unable to reach his first century of the season. He faced 176 balls and hit 14 fours. He was out after the second new ball was taken: Kabir had already had Oliver Newby caught at second slip - Graeme Hick holding the 1000th catch of his career in all forms of the game - and Ali bowled North, who was attempting to whip him to leg. He finished with six wickets in an innings for the second time this season.

Scoreboard

Gloucestershire: First Innings
Kadeer Ali c Davies b Kabir Ali 27
S D Snell b Jones 27
H J H Marshall c Davies b Kabir Ali 0
M J North b Kabir Ali 98
*A P R Gidman c Smith b Kabir Ali 11
C G Taylor c Smith b Batty 9
D O Brown b Arif 83
V Banerjee c Hick b Arif 1
O J Newby c Hick b Kabir Ali 5
S P Kirby b Kabir Ali 4
A J Ireland not out 1
Extras (b 8, lb 3, nb 6) 17

Total (86.3 overs) 283

Fall of wickets: 1-34, 2-38, 3-65, 4-91, 5-110, 6-240, 7-257, 8-271, 9-278.

Bowling: Kabir Ali 21.3-3-94-6; Mason 13-2-38-0; Jones 16-5-45-1; Arif 12-3-35-2; Batty 24-3-60-1.

Worcestershire: First Innings
D K H Mitchell c Snell b Kirby 12
S C Moore not out 10
Extras (nb 2) 2

Total (1 wkt, 6.3 overs) 24

*V S Solanki, B F Smith, G A Hick, S M Davies, G J Batty, Kabir Ali, S P Jones, M S Mason and Imran Arif to bat.

Fall of wicket: 1-24.

Bowling: Kirby 3.3-1-9-1; Newby 3-1-15-0.

Umpires: M J D Bodenham and P J Hartley.