Foley takes the helm at confident Colchester

JAKE Foley is the man to turn things around at Colchester and East Essex – says club chairman Andrew Kennedy.

The 23-year-old all-rounder has been appointed captain at Castle Park after former skipper Tom Ullyott left the club to return home to Nottinghamshire.

Colchester finished sixth last year in the Shepherd Nearne Essex League Premier Division but Foley could be the man to turn the tide.

The left-handed batsman, who once played for Hampshire against Sri Lanka A in 2014, has captained before and Kennedy is confident he is the right man for the job.

Kennedy said: “Jake was very keen to do the role and that was refreshing.

“He came to us at the end of last season and was very enthusiastic. Jake has been a captain before – he won the Southern Premier Cricket League down in Hampshire.

“He has experience of winning a league before and that’s very important, especially as a captain.

“I think we are definitely aiming for a top-five finish, this season.

“I would expect Brentwood to be very strong again and they’ve gained a couple of players and I would think Wanstead and Snaresbrook will be the same.

“Hornchurch and Chelmsford will also be up there challenging.

“We’ll be looking to try and win the Essex T20 competition.

“It’s our strength – we got very close to winning it last year and we won it in 2015.

“There’s been a fair bit of change that's gone on and there’s a different first-team squad but it's quite an exciting one.

“We have our squad now – it’s a very young team with more experienced players like Ben Stephens, Julian Russell and overseas player Darren Eckford.

“We have four really good seamers and two very good spinners.”