A SHOW of nerveless Welsh defiance apart, Gloucestershire reflected their Nevil Road surroundings in being very much a work in progress.
Having chosen to bat first on day one against Northamptonshire, Michael Klinger's men were bundled out for 192 as David Willey and Steven Crook shared seven wickets in seam-friendly conditions at the Bristol building site.
Abergavenny teenager Cameron Herring top scored with 43 in his maiden innings for the County, but Northants' 107 for three at stumps meant the ascendancy was theirs.
Already hailed as a bold captain by director of cricket John Bracewell, Klinger lived up to the billing with his decision at the toss beneath leaden Bristol skies.
Jack Taylor had earlier been preferred to Craig Miles to provide Klinger with a spin option later in the contest, but the hosts' first task was to negotiate a Northants pace attack that has flown out of the blocks this season.
Chris Dent fell at the start of the fifth over when he was snared by David Sales off David Willey for six, and two overs later Willey sent down a full inswinger that beat the defences of Dan Housego (2) and uprooted his off-stump.
Klinger and his predecessor Alex Gidman played and missed at a few as Willey and Australian Trent Copeland stuck admirably to a nagging length, but eventually batting began to look a little easier.
Enter Steven Crook, who induced a defensive prod from Klinger (23) and sent the Melbourne man packing via wicketkeeper David Murphy's diving catch.
Gidman departed in Crook's next over, again paying the price for a lack of conviction as he hung out his bat and presented Andrew Hall with a catch in the cordon.
Gloucestershire badly needed Hamish Marshall and Benny Howell to stick around, only for the former to perish to the penultimate ball before lunch for eight when he was caught behind by Murphy off Willey.
The procession continued at the start of the second session, Will Gidman (5) becoming Willey's fourth scalp when he was snared by Sales after Copeland had juggled the ball at third slip.
That paired Howell with another Bristol debutant in Herring, the 18-year-old wicketkeeper who made his County bow in the opening fixture at Essex but was denied any opportunity to bat.
Both he and Howell adopted a positive mindset, the more experienced man clubbing Copeland for a straight six in the 40th over before being cleaned up by Crook for 31.
Taylor was similarly keen to get on the front foot, and he was given a reprieve on 17 when Copeland floored a tough one-handed chance off an exasperated Crook.
A promising stand of 48 was ended when Taylor - who had amassed 31 from 42 balls - tried to take on the off-spinner James Middlebrook and holed out to Copeland at mid-off.
The following over saw David Payne (0) expertly stumped by Murphy off the medium pace of Hall, and not even Herring's breezy 81-ball knock could secure a batting point.
He was eventually undone by Middlebrook, Murphy again whipping off the bails to end the home innings in 63.1 overs.
Northants openers Stephen Peters and Kyle Coetzer looked assured from the outset in reply, and there was some relief in the home ranks when Coetzer (24) fenced at Will Gidman and was caught by a diving Herring.
Sales (5) slapped a slow bouncer from Liam Norwell straight to Housego at midwicket, and a brilliant running catch by Will Gidman accounted for Peters (34) to give the big paceman a second scalp.
