Norwich City's Jamie Cureton admitted Saturday's vital 1-1 draw at Colchester United left a bitter taste in his mouth. After the game, the 32-year-old confessed that the venom he had received at the ground from the moment he stepped off the team bus was disappointing after his heroics in Essex last season.

Norwich City's Jamie Cureton admitted Saturday's vital 1-1 draw at Colchester United left a bitter taste in his mouth.

The City striker was probably the happiest man on the pitch after Danny Granville's last-minute own goal earned the visitors a point in a drab and scrappy encounter at Layer Road.

Former United frontman Cureton was the closest Canary to the ball as it rolled in for the equaliser and celebrated wildly with the City faithful before kissing the badge on his shirt in front of the United fans as a payback for the vitriolic abuse he had received all afternoon.

But after the game, the 32-year-old confessed that the venom he had received at the ground from the moment he stepped off the team bus was disappointing after his heroics in Essex last season, which won him the Coca-Cola Championship golden boot.

“I expected to get booed but to be fair I'm a little bit disappointed,” he said.

“For what I achieved at the club, I don't think I expected it - to come here and get completely booed the whole 90 minutes. I did say in the run-up to it if they don't respect me for what I've done then I won't respect them and that's what they got at the end.

“Yeah, they don't like it but for what I achieved and the whole squad achieved last year, I bet the other four players that left don't get a reception like that. It's disappointing. I'm not going to lose any sleep about it but that's what they'll get from me. They won't get the respect they probably wanted, because they didn't give me it. I don't know maybe I just got one of those faces they won't boo. Maybe because I was a bit more public about wanting to leave. I just felt it was the right thing for me to do. I felt they should respect and respect what I achieved here, but they haven't and they showed that from the minute I walked out on the pitch.

“That's life, it's gone but if they think they can stand there for 90 minutes and not expect anything back then they are sadly mistaken.

“It's a bit disappointing. Colchester will carry on without me and I'll carry one without Colchester.”

But despite his personal disappointment, Cureton was happy the side managed to pick up a point from and instantly forgettable encounter, after falling behind to a Kevin McLeod gaol 10 minutes from time.

However city poured forward and grabbed their reward after Darel Russell had hit the post, to remain outside the bottom three.

“When you come back to your old club it's important you don't get beaten because you're going to get a lot of stick,” he said.

“In general for the boys and the club it's a vital point for us again. We've come away from home to a tough place, didn't play as well as we could have done but to come away with a point is pretty pleasing.

“We probably had a few chances. It was a bit scrappy all round really. I think we played well enough to win the game. Once they scored it was backs against the wall and I think it was then just a case of trying to claw a point out of it which we managed to do in the end.

“Maybe a month ago if we'd gone 1-0 down away we could have crumbled. We've been beat up a few times away from home, Plymouth and stuff. But I think we showed today that we've got our steel back.

“We haven't played well and we've got something out of it which we probably haven't done all season. I'm confident and we feel we're on a good run now and the squad is gelling together.

“We're very close knit and enjoying playing and training together and I think we'll climb up the table.”