MANAGER Tom Killick has revealed that contract talks remain ongoing with Marvin Brooks as Poole Town attempt to tie down the emerging talent.

Killick confirmed the Southern Premier newcomers had tabled an offer of a new deal but reported that Brooks had yet to agree terms or put pen to paper.

The energetic midfielder, who is also capable of playing as a centre-half, has established himself as a key member of Killick’s Dolphins team in recent years.

The performances of Brooks, who starred in Poole’s Southern Division One South & West title triumph last term, could have alerted some rival clubs.

Killick said Brooks had been included on Dolphins’ retained list and that the Tatnam outfit would be entitled to compensation as he is under-24.

But the Poole boss is keen to ensure that Brooks commits to Dolphins as he continues his team building for the 2013-14 campaign.

Killick told the Daily Echo: “Marvin has been offered terms but he hasn’t accepted them yet. We have had a couple of chats and discussions are ongoing.”

Discussing Brooks, who has scored 16 goals in 87 Poole appearances, Killick said: “He has grown in stature. He came from local football and I didn’t anticipate that he would make the impact he has.

“But I feel he has developed significantly as a player over the past two years and he has also developed as a personality within the club, to a point where he is now certainly one of our most important players. You could probably put Will Spetch in that category as well. They are two players that I believe are capable of still progressing.”

Meanwhile, Killick confirmed former Cherries winger Carl Preston had agreed a new one-year contract.

He believes Preston, who scored 15 goals in 53 appearances last term, can still improve despite his impressive record.

Killick added: “Sometimes, Carl has streaks of games where he does really well, then he may have two or three where his form drops a bit.

“But when he was on top of his game, teams at a level below often couldn’t live with him. He was a match-winner for us on several occasions. I am now confident he can replicate that in the league above. The only thing he needs to work on is trying to be a little bit more consistent.

“The thing I also think he has got a bit of improvement in is, perhaps, his final ball. His crossing could sometimes be improved but he suffers from the same problem as a lot of quick players – he is often running at such speed that it is more difficult to execute things at that speed.

“He has been an exceptional player for us over the years and it is a positive that I still see improvement in him.”