Tony Humes will make signing experienced players one of his top priorities this summer after keeping Colchester United in League One.

And the U’s boss says it is essential he brings in the right kind of characters when he recruits new personnel for his squad, in the coming weeks.

Humes is intent on building on Colchester’s dramatic final-day survival, where they beat Preston North End 1-0 to avoid relegation to League Two.

The continued progression of the club’s home-grown players at senior level will again play a big part in his thinking, for the 2015-16 season.

But Humes knows that any signings he makes this summer will also be essential in helping the U’s boost their chances of a higher-placed finish, next time around.

Humes said: “We have to build on what we’ve done this season and bring the right characters into the football club.

“We need some more experience – we know that – but we also have to make sure that we keep developing our young players.

“What we do over the summer will play a big part in what we do next season and how we take the football club forward.

“We know how the club is structured and the direction that the club is going in.

“We know what we can do and what we can’t do but we need to bring a few more experienced players in to help the younger players out.”

Humes has heaped praise on all of his Colchester players, in the aftermath of them successfully avoiding relegation.

A plethora of young players played a big part in helping the U’s stay up.

But Humes was also keen to pay tribute to the experienced spine of his team, which helped guide Colchester to safety.

“Chris Porter, David Fox and Bongani Khumalo are the elder statesmen in the team and they’ve come in and done brilliantly for us,” added the U’s boss.

“I can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done and I can’t praise them enough for what they’ve done.

“They’ve been great for the younger players and it’s about having the right characters who want to work with young players and help take us forward.

“The players have been outstanding.

“There have been several times this season where the players have been quite low, in terms of taking results on the chin.

“But we’ve always bounced back and the players never give up.”

For all of the latest Colchester United news, including more on Sean Clohessy's exit, see Wednesday's Daily Gazette.