A KEY figure at Bradford (Park Avenue) has been awarded a new contract and he has been speaking to the T&A about how much he is enjoying his time at Horsfall.

Midfielder Connor Shanks has signed an improved contract last week which will take him to the end of the season at the BD6 club.

He said: “I’ve been here since the since of the season and it’s going really well.

“We recently had a good run of form under our new manager Craig Elliott.”

Park Avenue finally lost in the Northern Premier League East Division on Saturday, as their unbeaten run ended at nine games.

They were beaten 3-1 at Newton Aycliffe, with their only goal of the game coming in the first half through a brilliant strike from Shanks.

After the home side went 1-0 up in the first half, Shanks was able to bring Bradford back level almost instantly, as he picked up the ball just outside the box, skipped inside the defender, then thumped a great strike past the keeper.

Connor Shanks celebrates his goal at Newton Aycliffe on SaturdayConnor Shanks celebrates his goal at Newton Aycliffe on Saturday (Image: John Rhodes)

Two more goals saw Newton Aycliffe secure the three points but Shanks will not look back as the team focuses its efforts on this weekend’s game.

“We’re not going to dwell on it,” said Shanks. “We’re looking to bounce straight back.

“We were all disappointed but hopefully we get all three points against Dunston this Saturday.”

Shanks praised Elliott for leading the club as they have a successful run to begin the season.

He said: “We’ve got a great group of lads and it’s all down to the basics really.

“The manager has a very clear way of playing and I’ve had some good games scoring goals and providing assists.”

Central midfielder Shanks, who described himself as a “box to box high energy player”, has already scored six goals this season and is aiming to score 16 times during the campaign – the same number he scored in a season playing for Huddersfield Town’s B side.

Shanks, who is 22, spent three seasons in Bradford City’s scholarship programme and then played one year as a pro for City.

He then moved to Huddersfield Town, where he played for two years before joining Spennymoor Town.

Last season, Shanks, who is from Brighouse, had a two-month loan spell at Bradford (Park Avenue) over the Christmas period and then signed permanently at the start of this season because he knew he “wanted to come back to Bradford”.

Shanks added: “I can’t speak highly enough about our manager and of the job he has done.

“We now need to push on as a team, but we’ll also take it one game at a time.

“We’re in a decent position (sixth in the table), but we’ve also got targets.

“We’ll take every game as it comes and we’ll be where we deserve to be at the end of the season.”