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                          NEW ENGLAND BANCSHARES, INC.
                               855 Enfield Street
                                Enfield, CT 06082

For Immediate Release

CONTACT:  Scott D. Nogles, Chief Financial Officer
          (860) 253-5200

            New England Bancshares, Inc. Reports Record Earnings for
                     the Three Months Ended March 31, 2008

ENFIELD, CT, May 1, 2008 - New England Bancshares,  Inc. (the "Company") (Nasdaq
GM: NEBS),  the holding company for Enfield Federal Savings and Loan Association
and Valley  Bank,  reported  net income for the quarter  ended March 31, 2008 of
$524,000, or $0.09 per diluted and basic share as compared to $196,000, or $0.04
per diluted  and basic  share,  reported  for the same  quarter a year ago.  Net
income for the year ended  March 31, 2008 was $1.2  million,  or $0.21 and $0.22
per diluted and basic share, respectively, as compared to $970,000, or $0.19 and
$0.20 per diluted and basic  share,  respectively,  for the year ended March 31,
2007.

Earnings  for the three  months  and year  ended  March  31,  2008  include  the
operations  of Valley  Bank  commencing  on July 12,  2007,  the date that First
Valley  Bancorp,  Inc., the holding company for Valley Bank, was acquired by the
Company. In connection with the acquisition, each share of First Valley Bancorp,
Inc.  was  converted  into  $9.00  in cash and  0.8907  shares  of the  Company,
resulting in the issuance of 1,068,625  shares and the payment of $10.8  million
in cash.  Through the  acquisition  of First Valley  Bancorp,  Inc., the Company
acquired $190.6 million of assets,  including  $141.0 million of net loans,  and
$178.4  million of  liabilities,  including  $168.5 million of deposits and $8.5
million of borrowings.

NET INTEREST AND DIVIDEND INCOME IMPROVES OVER PRIOR YEAR
Net  interest  and  dividend  income for the three  months  ended March 31, 2008
increased by $1.7  million,  or 72.2%,  compared to the three months ended March
31,  2007.  The  increase  for the quarter was  primarily  due to an increase in
average  interest earning assets of $203.4 million and a 30 basis point increase
in yield on  average  interest  earning  assets,  partially  offset  by a $193.2
million increase in average  interest  bearing  liabilities and a 20 basis point
increase in the rate paid on average interest bearing  liabilities.  The changes
in the yield on  average  interest  earning  assets and the rate paid on average
interest  bearing  liabilities  caused the  Company's  interest  rate  spread to
increase  from  2.89% for the  quarter  ended  March  31,  2007 to 2.97% for the
quarter ended March 31, 2008. The Company's net interest  margin for the quarter
ended March 31, 2008 was 3.49% compared to 3.66% in the year earlier period.

NONINTEREST INCOME
Noninterest  income was  $502,000  and $316,000 for the three months ended March
31, 2008 and 2007, respectively,  and $1.3 million and $1.0 million for the year
ended March 31,  2008 and 2007,  respectively.  Noninterest  income for the year
ended March 31, 2008 was affected by a $93,000 loss on sale of  investments.  In
the first quarter of fiscal 2008 the Company  recognized a $223,000 loss related
to the sale of two mutual funds  totaling $6.4  million.  Based on the

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forecasts for interest rates and the continued  loss position of the funds,  the
Company  decided to sell the funds and  reinvest the proceeds in loans and other
investments.  In  addition,  during the three  months  ended  March 31, 2008 the
Company  recognized  $109,000  of gains  on sales  and  calls of  securities  as
interest rates  declined.  The Company's  composition of noninterest  income has
changed with the  acquisition  of Valley Bank,  primarily due to its  investment
services subsidiary,  Riverside Investments. For the three months and year ended
March  31,  2008,  Riverside  Investments   contributed  $43,000  and  $127,000,
respectively, to the Company's noninterest income.

INCOME TAX EXPENSE
Income tax expense  increased from $153,000 for the three months ended March 31,
2007 to $173,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2008 and from $505,000 for
the year ended March 31, 2007 to $728,000 for the year ended March 31, 2008. The
effective  tax rates were 25.0% and 43.8% for the three  months  ended March 31,
2008 and 2007,  respectively,  and 37.5% and 34.2% for the year ended  March 31,
2008 and 2007,  respectively.  For the year ended March 31,  2008,  the $223,000
loss on sale of the mutual funds  described  above is  considered a capital loss
and can only be offset by capital gains.  The Company was able to offset $68,000
of the loss from a capital gain recorded two years ago; however,  the Company is
not able to record a tax benefit on the remaining  $155,000  capital  loss.  The
$155,000  is  allowed  to be carried  forward  for five  years to offset  future
capital gains. A valuation  allowance has been established for the full $155,000
as the Company does not expect to utilize the capital loss carryforward.

LOANS AND DEPOSITS GROW
At March 31,  2008 total  assets  were  $518.2  million,  an  increase of $234.0
million,  or 82.4%, from March 31, 2007. Net loans outstanding  increased $173.3
million,  or 87.3%,  to $371.8  million at March 31, 2008  compared to March 31,
2007. At March 31, 2008,  commercial real estate and commercial  loans accounted
for 56.1% of the loan portfolio, residential mortgage loans accounted for 33.7%;
and consumer loans accounted for 10.2%. It has been the Company's  policy not to
originate or invest in sub-prime or Alt-A loans. Total deposits increased $188.6
million to $370.3  million at March 31,  2008 from  $181.7  million at March 31,
2007.  Securities sold under  agreements to repurchase  decreased  $622,000 from
$9.2 million at March 31, 2007 to $8.6 million at March 31, 2008. Borrowed funds
increased  $32.2  million to $65.8  million at March 31, 2008  compared to $33.6
million at March 31, 2007.

STOCK REPURCHASE PROGRAM
On October 9, 2007 the Company announced the authorization of a stock repurchase
program to purchase 320,986 shares of the Company's outstanding common stock. On
March 7, 2008 the Company announced the completion of the repurchase  program at
an average price of $11.70, for a total of $3.8 million.

Statements  contained in this news release,  which are not historical facts, are
forward-looking  statements  as that term is defined in the  Private  Securities
Litigation  reform Act of 1995. Such  forward-looking  statements are subject to
risks and  uncertainties,  which could cause actual results to differ materially
from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors,  which include, but
are not limited to, factors discussed in documents filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. Subject to applicable laws
and regulation,  the Company does not undertake - and specifically disclaims any
obligation - to publicly  release the results of any revisions which may be made
to any  forward-looking

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statements to reflect events or circumstances  after the date of such statements
or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events.

New England  Bancshares,  Inc. is  headquartered  in Enfield,  Connecticut,  and
operates Enfield Federal Savings and Loan Association with eight banking centers
servicing  the  communities  of Enfield,  Manchester,  Suffield,  East  Windsor,
Ellington  and Windsor Locks and Valley Bank with four banking  centers  serving
the communities of Bristol,  Terryville and  Southington.  For more  information
regarding    Enfield   Federal's    products   and   services,    please   visit
www.enfieldfederal.com and for more information regarding Valley Bank's products
and services, please visit www.valleybankct.com.

                               Statistical Summary
                                   (unaudited)
                 (dollars in thousands, except per share data)

Income Statement Data                     Three Months Ended     Twelve Months
---------------------                          March 31,         Ended March 31,
                                            2008      2007       2008      2007
                                            ----      ----       ----      ----
Net interest and dividend income           $ 3,967   $ 2,304   $13,861   $ 9,369
Provision for loan losses                       99        60       307       242
Noninterest income                             502       316     1,338       991
Noninterest expense                          3,673     2,211    12,949     8,643
Net income                                     524       196     1,215       970
Earnings per share:
   Basic                                   $  0.09   $  0.04   $  0.22   $  0.20
   Diluted                                    0.09      0.04      0.21      0.19

Dividend per share                         $  0.03   $  0.03   $  0.12   $  0.12

Balance Sheet Data                            March 31, 2008      March 31, 2007
------------------                            --------------      --------------
Total assets                                     $518,179            $284,158
Total loans, net                                  371,769             198,447
Loan loss reserve                                   4,046               1,875
Total deposits                                    370,312             181,675
Repurchase agreements                               8,555               9,177
Borrowings                                         65,821              33,587
Total equity                                       68,737              57,266
Book value per share(1)                             11.96               11.65
Tangible book value per share(2)                     8.94               11.30

Key Ratios                            Three Months Ended    Twelve Months Ended
----------                                 March 31,             March 31,
                                        2008       2007       2008       2007
                                        ----       ----       ----       ----
Return on average assets                0.36%      0.29%      0.27%      0.39%
Return on average equity                3.04%      1.39%      1.83%      1.81%
Net interest margin                     3.49%      3.66%      3.53%      3.84%

(1) Calculation  excludes  unallocated ESOP shares and unvested  incentive stock
grants. Including these shares in the calculation causes book value per share to
decrease  to  $11.27  and  $10.71  at  March  31,  2008  and  March  31,   2007,
respectively.

(2) Calculation  excludes  unallocated ESOP shares and unvested  incentive stock
grants. Including these shares in the calculation causes book value per share to
decrease to $8.42 and $10.40 at March 31, 2008 and March 31, 2007, respectively.

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