KEY all-rounder Will Gidman has won his race to be fit for Gloucestershire's opening LV= County Championship Division Two clash of the season at Essex tomorrow.
Gidman pulled up lame in the county's pre-season clash with Glamorgan two weeks ago with a thigh injury and there were fears he would miss the trip to Chelmsford.
But he has been named in a 12-man squad for the Division Two opener and is set to start and play a full part with both bat and ball.
Gloucestershire boss Bracewell admitted that he had his first-choice XI pencilled in to start for a while with skipper Michael Klinger poised debut at the top of the order alongside England Under-19 cap Chris Dent.
Dan Housego and Benny Howell will battle it out for the number three spot, with Hamish Marshall and former skipper Alex Gidman supplying experience in the middle order.
The final makeup of the side will be decided by the condition of the Chelmsford wicket as both Housego and Howell could play if specialist spinner Jack Taylor misses out.
Welsh teenager Cameron Herring, who has played the majority of pre-season games will make his first-class debut, as he wins the battle for the wicket-keeping gloves with Richard Coughtrie and former Cheltenham Cricket Club star Gareth Roderick.
Bracewell admitted that it was a blow to lose the services of seamer Ian Saxelby for the opening six weeks of the season, but backed his other pace aces to shine.
James Fuller had a strong end to last season and made a significant impact playing Down Under for Otago in his native New Zealand and will join left-armer David Payne and Liam Norwell in the attack, alongside Will Gidman.
"The side has been pencilled in for the Essex game for a while and the pre-season games have given us an indication of the balance of the side that we would like to go in with," Bracewell said.
"There were some tricky decisions to make and wicket-keeping was certainly one of those as we have three good young keepers all vying for the place.
"And it's also managing a couple of niggles through to get people like Will Gidman in the side because of the value that he brings to us.
"Losing Ian Saxelby for the first six weeks of the season is a big blow to our bowling attack.
"Not only is he the most experienced of the attack despite his young age, he also bowls that good first-class length more than any other bowler in the squad on a more consistent basis.
"We are a bit fragile in terms of the depth of our squad but if we can get our A side on the park then we will be very competitive.
"And our B side must be ready to come in and make an impact too, as that's how we will improve as a side."
Gloucestershire: @M Klinger (capt), C Dent, D Housego, H Marshall, A Gidman, W Gidman, C Herring (wkt), J Taylor, J Fuller, D Payne, L Norwell, B Howell.
