Now Gloucestershire seek success in the championship

Gloucestershire are looking to cast off their image of a one-day specialist county, and should do so this summer by gaining promotion to Division One in the County Championship. While their success in the one-day form of the game in the past two seasons has been phenomenal, purists insist that the championship is the true yardstick of cricketing excellence.

Although the players spent much of the winter in a local fitness centre working to individually-tailored programmes, Gloucestershire will not go into the season free from injury.

Both Mike Smith and Jack Russell will miss the start of the season. Although Smith, currently described by the club as "80% fit" should be ready for the Benson and Hedges zonal matches in May, Russell's injury is more serious. The 37-year-old, whose spectacular keeping has been key to one-day triumphs, has a slipped disc and has been told to rest for a further six weeks.

Last summer saw Gloucestershire finish fourth in Division Two of the County Championship, missing out on promotion by two points. While skipper Mark Alleyne conceded that it was frustrating to miss out by such a margin, he is confident of further success this year. "We've learnt a lot of valuable lessons. We have a group of maturing players and I think we will be very competitive," he said.

This confidence is well founded. While Division Two looks competitive, Gloucestershire's balanced bowling attack will be dangerous on the green tracks at the County Ground. Mike Smith and Jon Lewis make an imposing new-ball pair, even though they are not perhaps the most respected in the country. Ian Harvey's bowling is more suited to one-day cricket, though his slower ball is a potent weapon in both forms of the game.

If Smith's injury keeps him out of the side for longer than expected, there are a number of seamers ready to take his place. Ben Gannon, Michael Cawdron and James Averis will all be in the running. While Gannon is more of a strike bowler, Cawdron and Averis plug away and might be more suitable on slow, green tracks early in the season.

Martyn Ball and Jeremy Snape provide spinning options, with Mark Alleyne and Tim Hancock ready to back up the seamers. The side will not be short of options, and batsmen will find it hard to dominate what is a very strong county attack.

From the batting point-of-view, there remain weaknesses. Matt Windows, Hancock, Rob Cunliffe, Harvey and Alleyne all have talent but they are currently inconsistent. The batting remains prone to collapse, and the top seven will need to realise that the bowlers cannot do all the hard work.

For players to watch, one needs to look no further than Chris Taylor. Taylor broke into the championship side last summer, announcing himself with a century at Lord's. Though his form tailed off towards the end of the summer, he is a vastly talented batsman, who scores freely when set.

The make-up of this summer's squad is similar to last year's. Left-hander Michael Sutliff gets a contract after some impressive knocks for the seconds, and seamer Alisdair Bressington secured a two-year deal. Ian Harvey returns for the third year, though he will miss the middle of the season after being selected in Australia's one-day squad.

Though there remains an absence of stars in the Gloucestershire side, Alleyne believes that all of the squad have the talent to go further. He describes his players as "hard-working, talented and possessing the right attitude. It's not a question of which individual can break through into the England squad, I think they all can".

Alleyne himself has not given up hope of a Test place. "My chances are diminishing but if I play some good stuff this season, then I am in with a shout." Most believe it is Alleyne's leadership, alongside John Bracewell's motivational coaching, that has helped the club to the one-day success which currently sees all of the domestic one-day trophies stored at the County Ground.

The club will be hungry this summer, and Alleyne is sure they can achieve even more. "We've always got a chance of winning things. The guys know what it takes to be successful.

"They don't mess around, they're not afraid to work hard and they're not shy to put more in."

Alleyne and Bracewell have a balanced, talented squad to command. They have also built in a sense of togetherness, which should stop individuals from becoming complacent. The coming summer is important, and by the end of it, Gloucestershire should be recognised as a very fine unit, in both forms of the game.