Cameron James says he is now hoping to establish himself in Colchester United’s line-up after making his first-ever senior start.

The 19-year-old defender impressed in his senior bow for the U’s, helping them secure a 1-0 victory over Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday night.

James, who has been at Colchester since he was nine years old, helped the U’s move into the League Two play-off places with their win over the Chairboys.

The Chelmsford-born teenager, who made his senior U’s bow against Rochdale as a substitute on the final day of last season, has now set his sights in keeping his place in John McGreal’s team.

James said: “It was good to get into the team and I thought it was a good performance.

“Hopefully, I can cement my place in the team now and keep moving forwards.

“I’ve been waiting for my chance patiently and playing at centre-back for the under-23s but it was a great feeling to get my first start, especially to come away with the win and the clean sheet.

“I’ve played under John McGreal and (assistant manager) Steve Ball at under-23 and youth team level and now with the first team and I feel like I’ve built a good relationship with them.

“They obviously had the trust in me to put me in alongside George (Elokobi) and more experienced players and it feels good.

“It’s definitely up there as one of the best days of my life.

“When I made my debut last season that was up there but this has topped it.

“It was a great experience and to get the three points and the clean sheet as well.

“The clean sheet is just as important as the win, as we’ve conceded quite a few goals recently.

“Earlier in the season, we were keeping clean sheets almost every week so we need to get back to being nice and solid at the back and scoring goals at the other end, too.

“We’ve moved up into the top seven and we now need to work hard and stay there until the end of the season.”

James was told by U’s boss McGreal that he would be starting against Wycombe the day before the game.

The versatile defender said that helped him mentally prepare with who he would be coming up against – including the Chairboys’ 16-stone man mountain Adebayo Akinfenwa.

“We had a team meeting (on Monday) about tactics and formations and the manager told me I was starting at the back,” added James, who penned a four-year deal with Colchester in 2015.

“It gave me a chance to get my head around it and think about things that I could do and the players that I’d be coming up against.

“It’s a good thing for me as a young player learning and coming into the team playing against players like (Adebayo) Akinfenwa with the support that I had around me.”

“It gave me something to look forward to, making my first start in such a big game.

“I was a bit nervous but I felt I managed to settle in quite quickly and I had George Elokobi next to me and he had his arm around me all through the game, giving me confidence.

“I felt we dealt with their attack well.”