Richardson: Gloucestershire would love to go back to Gloucester

Tom Richardson is not ruling out the possibility of county cricket returning to Gloucester in 2010.

Gloucestershire CCC abandoned their annual festival in the county town last year, citing financial reasons.

But club chief executive Richardson, pictured, confirmed the county is considering taking the show on the road and returning to the city next year.

Although the fixture list was released last week, Gloucestershire have yet to decide upon a venue for two Twenty20 games in June.

Providing a sponsor can be found, matches against Sussex and Kent on Friday, June 11 and Sunday, June 13 could be staged at Kings School, home of the festival between 1993 and 2008.

Richardson said: "We would very much like to return to Gloucester if we can and it is something we are working on.

"We are committed to taking the show on the road and it was with great reluctance that we decided not to play a match in Gloucester last season.

"But we had reached a point where four-day cricket was no longer pulling in the crowds and taking the operation to the King's School was proving too expensive.

"It has to make sense in financial terms and be a viable proposition. If an appropriate commercial sponsor can be found, then a return to Gloucester for 2010 could be on the cards."

Richardson believes the shorter Twenty20 format will prove more attractive than County Championship cricket and render a return to Archdeacon Meadow financially viable.

He said: "Crowds were dropping year on year for four-day cricket in the city and young people were staying away.

"But Twenty20 brings with it a different and younger audience and that is something we can tap into in the north of the county.

"With games scheduled around the weekend on Friday and Sunday evenings, I'm sure we would pull in the crowds."

Richardson categorically denied suggestions that a revamped Gloucester Festival would be staged at the old Wagon Works Ground at Tuffley Park, which last hosted county cricket in 1992.

He said: "If we were to go back there, it would definitely be to King's School. There is no way Tuffley Park would be ready in time to stage games in 2010."

Gloucestershire had hoped to stage Twenty20 matches at the Cheltenham Festival next year, only for the schedule to deny them the opportunity. The 11-day festival commences on July 29 and Gloucestershire take on neighbours Glamorgan and Worcestershire in four-day Championship games at the College Ground and Yorkshire and Middlesex in the 40-over competition.

Richardson said: "We really wanted to take Twenty20 to Cheltenham for the first time, but the timing of the festival made it impossible.

"The event is being staged a week later than in 2009 and, by the time we go there, the Twenty20 tournament will have finished."