James Ferry said his new 18-month contract shows the faith that Brentford have in him to become a first team footballer at Griffin Park.

The 18-year-old signed a new deal to take him through to the summer of 2017 earlier today after impressing for the Development Squad so far this season.

The midfielder, who captained Brentford to the Milk Cup title in 2012, told Bees Player: “I am really happy to be offered another 18 months from January. Now I have to crack on and keep going and get closer to the first team. It is really good to get something this early because you don’t have to be looking elsewhere and it shows that the club has faith in you to carry on through the system. The first contract was almost a case of looking at you again after the scholarship but now it shows that they believe in you.”

James has made 13 league and cup appearances for The Bees this season, captaining the side for much of the campaign.

Stepping up from the Youth Team last season James has been pleased with his start to the season but feels he now has to kick on to reach the first team.

“I think I have managed to step up well,” said James. “I have been a consistent player in the team. Being given the captaincy shows that they believe I can be a leader in the teams that I play in. Now I have to keep playing games and get closer to the first team.”

James was speaking after the Development Squad suffered only their second defeat in ten matches after a 3-1 defeat at Colchester United.

The Bees conceded twice in three minutes at Florence Park and James felt that was the decisive factor in a disappointing defeat.

“It was a disappointing afternoon,” said James. “We didn’t deserve anything from the game. We conceded some poor goals which maybe came down to a bit of inexperience from younger players. I was there last year and you do get used to it after a while. There were just a few things that shouldn’t have happened today. We needed to be more resilient and not concede that third goal straight after the second. It was a killer and meant that we couldn’t really get back into the game.”

Bees Player subscribers can listen to the full interview here