COLCHESTER United academy manager Jon de Souza believes competing against some of the biggest academies in the country will aid the development of the club's under-15 squad.

The U's youngsters hit new heights earlier this month, when they made progress in the Premier League U15s Floodlit Cup.

Colchester's under-23s had significant success in their version of the competition under Wayne Brown last season, reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Portsmouth.

De Souza said: "Overall we were delighted with the players' performances both individually and collectively, especially under a more competitive and intense environment than usual.

"For us as an Academy, it was fundamental we qualified as it would give us a minimum of six high quality games against predominantly Category One Premier League Academy sides based on the same format as the U23s' Premier League Cup competition.

"This will involve a Champions League-type format where we will be drawn with three other teams in a group and play each team home and away in order to try and qualify for the knock-out stages.

"The under-15s will enjoy some competitive games against some of the biggest and most successful academies in the country.

"These experiences will only help improve and develop our players, and hopefully provide them with further challenges to help them fulfil their potential."

Colchester under-15s took part in a three-way tournament at the Premier League Floodlit Cup qualifiers at Ipswich Town’s training ground.

They took on hosts Ipswich and Luton Town, with only the top team qualifying for the Floodlit Cup.

The U's youngsters performed very well, finishing top of the group with four points after beating Luton Town 7-1 and drawing 0-0 with Ipswich Town.