Signing Connor Deeks up to a longer term contract is a measure of the progress Lowestoft Town are making both on and off the pitch.

That's the verdict of assistant boss Andy Reynolds, who arrived at the Amber Dew Events Stadium alongside Jamie Godbold in the summer with the club on its uppers.

The pair have steadied the ship amidst a tough financial backdrop but Reynolds believes getting Deeks to sign a new two-and-a-half year deal shows the progress the club are making.

'The fact that we (Lowestoft) are now in a position where the board have been able to give us some resources shows the progress we are making both on and off the pitch,' said Reynolds. 'We are delighted that he (Deeks) has committed and I think it's the first time that he has committed to a longer term deal somewhere.

'It gives him some stability - he has really stepped up and we are delighted we can keep these kinds of players.'

Deeks celebrated penning his new deal with a match-winning brace on Tuesday evening as the Blues came from behind to beat Biggleswade.

The match ended on a sour note for the 21-year-old as he received his marching orders late on but Reynolds is delighted with the progress the youngster has made.

'Before our time together at Wroxham we had never worked with him before but we obviously knew he was a local talent,' added Reynolds. 'As such I think he has been able to have his pick of the clubs in our area and he has perhaps taken advantage of that.

'But we are delighted he wants to stay with us and we want to try and improve him both technically and physically.'

Lowestoft will be looking to build on their midweek win when they take on struggling Halesowen Town at home with the visitors just three points off the Trawlerboys with a game in hand.

'We have to take a lot of heart from our recent performances,' said Reynolds. 'We have shown so far that when we are performing at a high level that we can live with any team in this division.

'We just need to try and not look at the league table too much and not look at the results of other teams and what they are doing. We need to look after ourselves.'

Andrew Fisk will miss the festive period with a hamstring injury but both Josh Curry and Jacek Zielonka could be available after resuming full training.