SWINDON Town striker Jacob Wakeling has signed a new three-and-a-half-year contract at the club, keeping him in Wiltshire until 2026.

The 20-year-old initially agreed a one-year deal when signing for Scott Lindsey’s men in the summer, but four goals and two assists in 10 appearances have convinced Town bosses to tie their highly-talented young asset down for multiple seasons to come.

A former West Bromwich Albion and Leicester City academy prospect, the Alvechurch-born forward had only scored 17 goals in 70 games at youth level before spending a disappointing loan spell at Barrow last season.

But after making the switch to SN1 and fitting seamlessly into Town’s young squad full of players with high potential, Wakeling insists he is desperate to fire the club to promotion.

He said: “I’m absolutely delighted to extend my stay here. It was a no-brainer for me as soon as the opportunity came up.

“I’m loving my football here, and the fans have been absolutely brilliant with me – I want to repay them on the pitch.

“I’ve started the season strongly, and I just want to kick on now and help the team achieve promotion, which is the end goal. I want to score more goals and play my best football here.

“Not many people had heard of me before I came here, so I want to knuckle down and repay the faith everyone at the club has shown in me to put me on the pitch and allow me to show what I can do.”

Wakeling’s head coach, Scott Lindsey, has deployed his young star in a central role and out wide so far, with the 21-year-old performing admirably wherever he has been asked to play.

Discussing the new deal, Lindsey was equally delighted at seeing the 21-year-old pen one of the longest single contracts handed out to a player in Town’s history.

Lindsey said: “It’s great news for the football club. Jacob has been brilliant since he came in, and like I’ve said several times already, his work ethic is exactly what we want at this club.

“He’s a great example of what we want the players to be like. He will chase everything, he scores goals through his determination to press high up the pitch, he’s got a hammer of a left foot, he can head the ball, he’s aggressive.

“He’s been outstanding for us, and it was only right we rewarded him with a new, long-term contract.”