A loved-up Jonathon Patton has signed a three-year extension which will keep him at the Giants till the end of 2020 but by the way he’s talking he could be there even longer.

“There was nothing else I wanted to do more than stay at the Giants,” Patton said.

“We’re building such a good culture here and it’s something I don’t want to leave. This is my home now I love the Giants, I love Sydney, I love the boys, I love Dave (Matthews), I love Leon (Cameron) and everyone. I can’t see why I would leave.”

media_camera GWS Giants player Jonathon Patton has signed on for a further three years with the club. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Patton could be excused for his excitement at the new deal especially considering the challenging start to his career.

When he suffered his second ACL rupture and third serious knee injury in the round 21 match against Melbourne in 2014 the prospect of remaining contracted long term looked remote.

The Giants kept their faith in the No.1 pick from the 2011 draft and extended his agreement until this year. Since then the work has all been Patton’s as he looked to repay the fledgling club for its loyalty.

“We all know about the injuries I’ve had,” Patton said.

“When the Giants stuck with me through that tough time I always said when my career was back on track I wanted to play with them. It’s great that I’ve had continuity with my body for more than two years now. It’s something I haven’t had since I was 17. To get through another pre-season is great for my confidence. It’s a great feeling to know you can get through every session and game without anything else to worry about.”

"There was nothing I wanted to do more than commit to the GIANTS, this is my home," Jon Patton on his new contrat pic.twitter.com/ptT8HgCJdr — GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) February 28, 2017

The new deal is reward for an outstanding finish to last year where he averaged four goals per game over the last six matches including four goals in their six-point preliminary final loss to eventual premiers Western Bulldogs.

The 23-year-old has taken that form into 2017, kicking three goals in the 33-point win in their JLT Series opener against West Coast in Narrandera two weeks ago.

“It’s not just last year we’ve had a sense that something has been building for a long time. A lot of us have played together since we were 13 so it’s not just making the prelim last year we feel like we’re creating a good culture going forward.”

The Giants also announced a three-year partnership with WestConnex which will support GWS care programs in western Sydney communities. Their training facility at Sydney Olympic Park has been renamed the WestConnex Centre.

Originally published as Giants lock Patton in until 2020