4.30pm latest:

Gloucestershire continued to improve their position in the afternoon session of the second day of the LV County Championship match with Essex at Bristol.

The visitors came out after lunch on 147-7 and added a further 28 runs without mishap to overtake Gloucestershire’s first innings total of 155.

But their last three wickets then fell in the space of nine balls as they were bowled out for 177. By tea the home side had responded with 39 without loss to lead by 17.

Ryan ten Doeschate added 42 to his five-wicket haul in Gloucestershire’s first innings before being the eighth Essex batsman out, caught by Ian Saxelby at deep square trying to pull a ball from Alex Gidman.

The eighth-wicket partnership with James Middlebrook had been worth a valuable 66 runs, but after ten Doeschate’s departure the innings folded tamely.

David Masters offered a second catch of the day to substitute fielder Grant Hodnett at gully off Hamish Marshall before Middlebrook, on 17, edged Gidman to wicketkeeper Steve Snell.

Skipper Gidman finished with 3-23 from 15.1 overs, having produced some excellent seaming deliveries. Jon Lewis claimed 2-39 and James Franklin, off the field with a hamstring problem, had 2-7 from the previous evening.

Kadeer Ali and Craig Spearman made a confident start to Gloucestershire’s second innings and both were unbeaten on 19 at tea.

Lunch report:

Gloucestershire’s bowlers hit back strongly on the second day of the LV County Championship match with Essex at Bristol, despite being without James Franklin because of a hamstring problem.

Resuming on 60-3 in reply to 155, the visitors plunged to 109-7 at one stage before James Middlebrook and Ryan ten Doeschate saw them to 147-7 at lunch.

Chris Wright was the first batsman to fall. On 21, he drove at Ian Saxelby and only succeeded in directing the ball to gully where Grant Hodnett, fielding as substitute for Franklin, took a smart catch.

That was 79-4 and it became 105-5 when Essex skipper Mark Pettini was run out attempting a second run to third man. Hamish Marshall, running from second slip did the fielding and returned to wicketkeeper Steve Snell.

Pettini had made eight and James Foster quickly followed for a duck, well caught low down by Marshall in the slips off Jon Lewis.

Jaik Mickleburgh had battled away for 94 balls for his 32 when getting an edge to an Alex Gidman delivery that moved off the seam and giving a routine catch to Snell.

At that stage Gloucestershire had high hopes of a first innings lead. But Middlebrook (9 not out) and ten Doeschate (25 not out) stopped the rot with some positive batting and Essex were only eight runs behind at the interval.

Franklin was off the field nursing a tight hamstring after taking two wickets the previous evening.