Worcestershire hit back in style after being on the receiving end of a 70 ball 100 from Matt Machan to dismiss Sussex for 345 on the opening day of the LV = County Championship Division One clash at Hove.
The county bowlers responded in fine fashion on a wicket with pace and bounce after Sussex had reached 153-1 at lunch and then 231-3 after deciding to bat.
They claimed maximum bowling points – as was the case against Yorkshire – with all-rounder Gareth Andrew following up his half century and 5-85 in the opening game of the season with another three wickets.
There was also the encouraging sign of the first wickets for Worcestershire for Sri Lankan spinner Sachithra Senanayake who finished with 2-79 from 25 overs.
Charlie Morris (two), Jack Shantry (two) and Alex Gidman were the other wicket-takers.
Then openers Daryl Mitchell and Richard Oliver saw Worcestershire through to stumps at 45-0 from 15 overs.
Machan, who played in all six of Scotland's World Cup matches and scored a half century against finalists New Zealand, took toll of a short boundary on what was the off side of the ground for him in making a career best 135.
Even good length deliveries were punished by the left hander.
Morris made an early breakthrough in dismissing Luke Wells who, playing away from his body, was caught in the gulley by Tom Kohler-Cadmore when on nine and the total 16-1 in the sixth over.
Wells failed to add to his score after being dropped in the previous over from Andrew by Tom Fell at third slip.
The remainder of the morning session was dominated by who finished on 87 not out but the picture changed in the afternoon session.
Shantry struck in the third over after lunch as Joyce on 49 flashed at a delivery and Gidman at first slip held onto a sharp chance with the score 161-2 in the 34th over.
Joyce and Machan added 145 in 27.4 overs for the second wicket. Machan went to his century off 70 balls with his fourth six – off Shantry – over mid wicket and he also hit 13 fours.
Morris picked up his second wicket when Craig Cachopa, a team-mate of Worcestershire's NatWest T20 Blast player Colin Munro at Auckland, was undone by a delivery of extra lift after making eight.
It hit the shoulder of the bat and Worcestershire skipper Daryl Mitchell held onto a fine diving catch at second slip.
Machan's fine knock ended after making a career best 135 when he holed out to Richard Oliver at deep mid wicket off Shantry with the total 231-4.
He struck four sixes and 18 fours and faced just 99 balls.
Andrew collected his first wicket when Ben Brown (19) went for the hook and top-edged a catch to substitute Joe Leach, again at deep mid wicket.
Luke Wright scored freely and reached his third half century of the season from 57 balls with eight fours out of 284-5.
But Gidman ended his knock on 51 in his second over when Wright looked to pull square of the wicket and top edged a catch to Senanayake in front of the pavilion.
Sussex reached tea on 300-6 from 64 overs and Senanayake made inroads with successive balls after the resumption as he sent back Ashar Zaidi (7) and former Worcestershire player Steve Magoffin (0) – the latter lbw – to reduce Sussex to 306-8.
Andrew polished off the innings by bowling Tynan Mills for five and having Matthew Hobden caught at third slip by Fell for a single to leave Ajmal Shahzad unbeaten on 45.
It meant the last nine wickets had gone down for 184 runs.
Staunch Aston Villa fan Mitchell had no time to celebrate the FA Cup semi-final win over Liverpool before going to the wicket and he had an escape on 12.
The opener edged a delivery from Shahzad but Joyce at second slip spilled the low chance.
Oliver collected boundaries via a square cut from Hobden and a cover drive against Magoffin.
Sussex – first innings
Joyce c Gidman b Shantry 49
Wells v Kohler-Cadmore b Morris 9
Machan c Oliver b Shantry 135
Cachopa c Mitchell b Morris 8
Wright c Senanayake b Gidman 51
Brown c sub b Andrew 19
Zaidi c Fell b Senanayake 7
Shahzad not out 45
Magoffin lbw Senanayake 0
Mills b Andrew 5
Hobden c Fell b Andrew 1
Extras 16
Total (all out) 345 in 79 overs
FOW: 16, 161, 192, 231, 270, 286, 306, 306, 337, 345.
Bowling
Andrew 17-1-73-3
Morris 20-0-79-2
Shantry 13-2-86-2
Senanayake 25-1-79-2
Mitchell 1-0-1-0
Gidman 3-1-11-1
Worcestershire – first innings
Mitchell not out 18
Oliver not out 21
Extras 6
Total (for 0 wickets) 45 in 15 overs.
Bowling
Magoffin 6-1-13-0
Shahzad 3-0-8-0
Hobden 4-0-13-0
Mills 2-0-11-0
