COLCHESTER and East Essex Cricket Club chairman Andrew Kennedy says promotion will be their target when they begin life back in Shepherd Neame Essex League division one tomorrow.

Jake Foley’s first XI host Hainault and Clayhall at Castle Park, with the main aim to bounce back immediately from the disappointment of suffering relegation from the top-flight, last year.

Colchester have added the likes of Zimbabwe international Taurai Muzarabani and Grenada under-19 international Denson Narayan to their ranks, this season but have lost the likes of Ben Allison and Greg Stephens.

Kennedy said: “We’ll look to push on and win promotion.

“It’s been a bit of a yo-yo time for us, going up and down.

“There’s a bit of a gap in standard between the two divisions but a lot of it will depend on the availability of players.

“I think the two teams who have gone down – us and Upminster – would usually be favourites to go back up but we’ve both lost players and I think six teams could be competing for promotion.

“Division one is a new proposition for us with slightly shorter games, which I think will suit us - it’s 120 overs in the premier division and 95 in division one.”

Colchester registered just three league wins in the whole of last season in the premier division, finishing second from bottom in the table.

“Getting relegated wasn’t great, last season,” added Kennedy.

“We had a very young team, last year.

“It was disappointing to go down but we’ve had players leave, this summer and realistically, it’d have been even more of a challenge for us in the higher division again had we stayed up.”

n Frinton’s cricketers head to Sudbury tomorrow – determined to build on last week’s Gibbs Denley East Anglian Premier League success at home to Horsford.

They won by six wickets, with new Sri Lankan recruit Pulina Thuranga making an instant impact, taking three wickets for 25 runs as the visitors were all out for 124.

Skipper Kyran Young also took three wickets and there were a couple apiece for Michael Comber and Mervyn Westfield.

Frinton then rattled off the runs need for victory, with Young making 34, Alex Price 30 and Thuranga 25.

Sudbury finished as runners-up in last year’s Premier League, behind champions Great Witchingham.