Canberra Raiders youngster Jack Wighton signs contract extension

RAIDERS sensation Jack Wighton has re-signed with Canberra until the end of the 2014 season.

RAIDERS sensation Jack Wighton has re-signed with Canberra until the end of the 2014 season.

In another show of faith in coach David Furner's tenure at the club, Wighton this morning signed a one-year-contract extension, having already been tied to the club until the end of 2013.

The Raiders' clear focus on developing young talent is beginning to pay off, with a core group, led by young stars Josh Dugan and Shaun Fensom, beginning to emerge.

Making his NRL debut earlier this season, Wighton showed promising signs on the wing and in the centres, despite playing in the halves for the Raiders in the NYC.

"I'm very happy to have signed this extension and I love playing footy in Canberra," Wighton said. "It's my home now and being from a country town like Orange it's a great place to live and most importantly play footy."

A backyard trampoline accident has seen him ruled out for the rest of the season as he continues to recover from a foot injury.

However, Raiders boss Don Furner said he saw enough in Wighton's brief stint in the NRL to know he was a priority signing.

"We've been working on the deal for a while and we would have loved to have extended him for more than a year, but at the same time it's great news for the club to have him for another two at this stage of his career," Furner said.

"There was plenty of interest from other clubs so he was a priority signing for us.

"He's happy here and we'll back ourselves to keep him here and if we extend him year by year that's fine by us. He's definitely a first grader and we're happy to have him."