Ebbsfleet United have extended Crawley midfielder Josh Payne's loan deal for the remainder of the season.

The 29-year-old joined the Fleet at the start of October and his loan deal was due to expire after the National League trip to Barrow on Saturday.

But Payne has proved largely popular at Stonebridge Road and manager Kevin Watson was keen to extend his stay.

Payne has played 17 times for Ebbsfleet, scoring twice - including a wonder goal against Notts County in the FA Cup first round.

Payne spoke in November about how much he was enjoying his time with the Fleet.

He becomes the second loan player to extend his deal to the end of the season, with Newport's Marvel Ekpiteta having already agreed to extend his time in north Kent.

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