Essex skipper Mark Pettini is proud of his side for silencing the critics, who wrote off their chances of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Friends Provident Trophy.

Despite their eight-wicket defeat to Middlesex at Lord's on Wednesday, Essex have made it through to the last eight and have been drawn away to Leicestershire.

And Pettini said his team's achievement is huge, as they were considered to be one of the weak links in a tough-looking group, not that he ever doubted their ability to qualify.

He told the Gazette: "It's great that we're through to the last-eight.

"I feel like it's a real feather in the caps of myself and the coach Larry (Paul Grayson) because our group, the South/East Division, is the toughest in the country.

"Kent are a quality one-day team, Sussex won the competition two years ago, Surrey are obviously superb and Middlesex are pretty good so to get through is fantastic.

"I don't read a lot of articles about cricket but I did know that no-one really gave us a chance of much success this year.

"We were meant to be a mid-table team in all respects so to qualify from such a strong group was a real achievement.

"It's great for myself and Larry to have done that in our first full year and I'm very proud of that."

The visit to Leicestershire is sure to be a spicy affair after Pettini admitted the two side's recent Liverpool Victoria County Championship match, which ended in a draw, was bad-tempered'.

He said: "There was some bad feeling between the two teams and it wasn't very pleasant."

He added that the return fixture in the county championship is likely to be a grudge' match.

Pettini himself will have plenty to think about in the coming weeks, with a worrying shortage of runs hindering him for a second season running.

In his last ten innings he has notched five ducks and been out for single figures three times.