Callum Taylor is targeting a breakthrough season with Essex and feels his work Down Under during the winter could pay dividends.

The 19-year-old, from Norwich, made his T20 debut for Essex against Hampshire in 2015 and went on to represent England at the Under-19 World Cup last February.

However, he didn’t make the impact he was hoping for with the Eagles last summer, playing mainly second team cricket, and spent time out in Australia during the winter months, honing his skills.

Taylor, who plays for Swardeston Cricket Club, having previously played for Sheringham, said: “I was definitely disappointed with last season.

“This year I am looking to put a marker down and cement a place in the team.

“I don’t really know what happened, it was just one of those seasons that can happen, just as you can have a really good season.”

The teenager spent his winter playing in Perth, spending five months playing on the other side of the world, and added: “I went to Perth for five months, playing for a team called Mount Lawley, and got loads of overs under my belt and had plenty of time in the middle.

“I feel as though I have come back a totally different player, compared to when I went over there, and it’s nice that a few of the (Essex) lads have said there is a notable difference in my game as well, it definitely made the trip worthwhile.

“It was my first time away for that period of time, meeting new people, living with someone I had never met before for five months. There was responsibility on and off the field.”

Taylor is hoping to make his mark in a team that is buoyant following promotion last season and believes he has more strings to his bow than a year ago.

“It (the team) looks really exciting, there is healthy competition for places and that is where you want to be from a squad point-of-view,” Taylor explained.

He added: “I have always been a batting all-rounder, who bowled a few overs, but I see myself trying to become that genuine all-rounder in the next two years, batting in the top-six and bowling at first or second change.”

Essex start their County Championship campaign at home to Lancashire, tomorrow.