CHRISTMAS has come early for young Burnley players Bradley Jackson, Ntumba Massanka and Conor Mitchell, after they signed new contracts with the Clarets.

The deals cap a memorable few months for the development squad trio, with goalkeeper Mitchell and midfielder Jackson both named in the senior matchday squad, with prolific striker Massanka also on the fringes of the first team recently.

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Jackson, last season’s youth team player of the year, has been named as a substitute twice this season – against Port Vale in the League Cup and Birmingham City in the Championship – after travelling with the squad to Scotland for pre-season.

Mitchell earned a debut call-up at Middlesbrough last week to continue his rise through the ranks, after Matt Gilks fell ill.

Striker Massanka is being closely monitored after scoring 16 goals in just 14 starts for the Under-21s.

Jackson said: “It’s great to have some stability and I can now just concentrate on getting my head down and improving.”

Massanka added: “I’m thrilled to commit to the club.

I feel like I have had a good start to the season and hopefully that has caught people’s attention and all I can do is make sure my performances don’t drop.”

Northern Ireland U19 international Mitcell, who has been with the club for four years, said: “I’ve worked hard since pre-season, kept my head down and tried to learn as much as possible from everyone around me, so to get rewarded for that is brilliant news for me.”