DENIZ MEHMET has said he can "look forward to next year now" after he put pen to paper on a new contract with Athletic.

The 30-year-old, who enjoyed a record-breaking season between the posts as Dunfermline clinched League One title glory, has agreed a new three-year deal to stay at KDM Group East End Park.

Former Dundee United stopper Mehmet joined the Pars in the summer of 2021 on a two-year contract, but has committed his future to the club ahead of their return to the Championship next season.

"It's good to have it done and over the line," he said.

"I can look forward to next year now.

"There was never any doubt. We were speaking earlier on in the season and, just as these things do, they take time.

"It's good to be here, 100 per cent."

Mehmet follows on from the likes of Josh Edwards, Joe Chalmers, Matty Todd, Craig Wighton, Rhys Breen and Aaron Comrie agreeing new terms with the club, and comes less than a week after Dunfermline completed the permanent signing of loan star, Kane Ritchie-Hosler, who has also signed on for three years.

After a difficult first season as an Athletic player - he made just eight appearances as the club suffered relegation - Mehmet has been a crucial part of the team's revival in the campaign just finished.

 

He played in all-but-one of their competitive matches - the only one he missed being an SPFL Trust Trophy tie with Celtic 'B' - and recorded 24 clean sheets across those games.

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Of those, 21 came in the league, which surpassed a club record, previously held by Ian Westwater, in 1985/86, for the most shut outs recorded by a goalkeeper in a single Pars season.

The 21 goals conceded in 36 League One outings, and the 10 lost at home, and 11 away, were all new club bests as well, and he noted: "It's nice to look back on, with the history this club's got, and to be able to say I'm the one that holds the clean sheet records is an amazing feeling to have " It's another proud feeling but, again, it's definitely nowhere near achievable if it wasn't for the boys doing what they did."

Following the season's conclusion, a social media post, which ended with Mehmet saying "Thank you all for a season to remember", sparked discussions as to whether he'd be remaining with the club, but the player is delighted to be sticking around long-term.

"It's nice to have that sort of commitment shown to me from the gaffer and the club, and it's good for me to know where I'm going to be for the forseeable future, the next three years," he added.

"It's good to have that security, and it's just a peace of mind you're in for the seasons to come, so it's just a good feeling."

We will have more on Mehmet's new deal in Thursday's Press Sport.

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