Gloucestershire contact Marshall

New Zealand’s Hamish Marshall has been approached by Gloucestershire to fill an overseas player vacancy for the 2006 season.

Gloucestershire coach Mark Alleyne: “He comes highly recommended by a number of respected coaches around the world, but nothing has happened yet.”

Marshall has struggled for runs recently in Zimbabwe and now South Africa, but was New Zealand’s batsman of the year for 2004-5.

New Zealand have ties with Gloucestershire through current Black Caps coach John Bracewell and batsman Craig Spearman.