Leicestershire fell short by 55 runs in their bid for victory in the Second X1 Championship clash with Essex at Oakham School.

Set a target of 304 they were bowled out for 249 after Tom New and Damien Brandy had put them in with a chance with a century stand.

But in the end the extra experience of an Essex side which included Mark Illott proved decisive, and Leicestershire were unable to achieve what would have been a memorable win.

Coach Lloyd Tennant was more than satisfied with the effort however, and said that despite defeat there were a lot of plusses to come out of the match.

Tennant said:"New batted really well to make 89,Brandy scored another 48 to follow up his half-century in the first innings, and Stephen Adshead returned to form as well with a fine 50.

"When you consider that the oldest batter in our side was Ashley Wright at 21, then it was a good effort to go as close as we did.We have gone down the path of playing youngsters this season, and we knew it would be tough for them in many of the games.

"But there are real signs of improvement,and the good thing is that we are now starting to compete and give the opposition a run for their money."

© Leicestershire CCC