South Shields boosted as striker Paul Blackett pens new deal

Paul Blackett has set his sights on firing South Shields into the play-offs after committing his long-term future to the National League North club.

The former Gateshead striker joined the Mariners from step two rivals Spennymoor Town last summer and went on to enjoy an overwhelmingly successful first season at the 1st Cloud Arena. Blackett plundered his way to 30 goals in all competitions and was named both Mariners player of the year and the Vanarama National League North player of the year, as well as landing the award for the division’s top goalscorer.

Despite his spectacular goalscoring return, Blackett’s goals were not enough to help Elliott Dickman’s side secure a place in the play-off spots, something the striker is keen to remedy after putting pen-to-paper on a new three-year deal.

He told the club website: “I am happy to get it done. It’s been going on a little while now so I thought it was important to get it done before the start of the season and not let it hang over for too long. The main thing of extending my stay was I’m really happy here and I don’t feel like I needed the change in terms of where I needed to be at. (I) obviously did well last year so it’s all about building on that now. We were unlucky last year to miss out on the play-offs so hopefully we can go one better.”

Mariners boss Dickman described himself as ‘thrilled’ over Blackett’s decision to commit his future to the club and described the striker as ‘vital’ the his plans to develop both his squad and the club as a whole.

He said: "We are absolutely delighted that Paul has agreed a new three-year contract with the Club. He has this exceptional ability to create and score goals. The fact that he was awarded Top Goalscorer and Player of the Year by the League is a testament to how Paul plays the game. We know that keeping Paul with us is vital in our plans to help continue to improve and develop as a team and Club. We are thrilled that he has chosen to extend his stay with us."