JOHN Sussex is excited to have brought Kris Newby to Basildon United.

The former Tilbury man has joined the Bees as injuries mount up for the Isthmian North club.

And Sussex feels Newby adds plenty of quality to his side.

The Basildon boss said: “Kris has come in and he is a very good footballer.

“I was interested in signing him in the summer and he left Tilbury.

“He asked if we would be interested in taking him on but, at that stage, I wasn’t actively looking to sign anyone because of the options I already had.

“But Harry Norman will be out longer than we first thought with an injury and so I’ve decided to bring Kris in now.

“He brings a lot of quality, experience and is a winner.

“I’m certain that he will make us a better side.”

Newby made his Bees debut against former club Tilbury in an Isthmian League Cup group stage clash at the Cousins Car Wash Stadium on Tuesday.

However, the new signing could not drive Basildon onto victory as the Dockers, managed by ex-Bees boss Marc Harrison, sealed a 3-0 win.

Goals from Ola Ogunwamide and former Canvey Island frontman George Sykes inside the opening 15 minutes put Tilbury in control, while Toby Aromolaran added a late third.

And Sussex admitted it was a frustrating contest.

Sussex added: “They are a very strong team and played their best team, whereas we were without five injured players.

“Tilbury are very direct, hit the ball long and have lots of big players.

“In the final third, they have some quality players that can hurt you and that’s what happened.

“We defended poorly for the first goal and should have closed him down.

“For the second goal, they countered after we lost the ball in midfield.

“They cleared it off the line a couple of times and it was a frustrating night for us.

“We threw players forward as we looked for a way back into the game and they scored the third goal because of that late on.”

Sussex concedes Basildon are still in transition.

“When I came in last season, it was about finding combinations to make sure we didn’t get beaten,” admitted Sussex, who took charge in March.

“But we have much better players now and we’re being more adventurous.

“We are trying to play some good, entertaining football and working it through the thirds.

“We’re still in transition because we’re using a different formation to how we ended last season.”