Jones mops up the tail

Simon Jones took his first four-day five-wicket haul since 2004 © Getty Images

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Simon Jones continued his impressive form at New Road as the former England fast bowler mopped up Gloucestershire’s lower order on a rain-shortened day in the LV County Championship.

Having taken 5-32 in a career-best one-day performance against Hampshire on Sunday, he picked up five wickets in a championship innings for the first time since ankle and knee injuries put his Test career on hold during the Ashes series in 2005.

Gloucestershire’s decision to bat on from the overnight 411 for six was open to question when Jones secured an additional bonus point for Worcestershire with three wickets in 29 balls for a return of 5-92.

The visitors added only 33 in 11.2 overs before Jones and Steve Magoffin (3-116) dismissed them for 444 but bad light and more rain prevented a reply by Worcestershire.

After a month’s lay-off from Championship bowling because of a neck injury on his debut for his new county, Jones got through 19 overs on the first day and welcomed an ideal opportunity to bowl a sharp spell in the short passage of play on the second afternoon.

Mostly pitching the ball up at a decent pace, he removed the overnight pair, Stephen Snell and Mark Hardinges, in completing his best performance in the four-day competition since his 5-77 for Glamorgan against Yorkshire at Headingley in September 2004.

Snell failed to add to his career-best 127 before he edged Jones’ fourth ball of the day to wicketkeeper Steven Davies, with a seventh-wicket partnership of 108 finally broken.

Davies then held his fifth catch of the innings when Mathew Gitsham was forced on to back foot by Magoffin.

Hardinges, resuming on 66, still had hopes of making a fifth career century when he drove a couple of boundaries, but on reaching 82 from only 90 balls, he lost his off stump to the lively Jones. The 29-year-old paceman then produced a similar delivery to bowl last man Anthony Ireland.

Despite the summary end to their innings, Gloucestershire still had reason to be pleased with their recovery after lurching to 85 for five on the first morning.

For Worcestershire it was the first time their bowlers had been made to work so hard in a first innings this season. None of their first three opponents, Warwickshire, Leicestershire and Northamptonshire, scored more than 215.

However, Jones’ late intervention made sure they maintained a 100 per cent record for bowling points.