GILLINGHAM captain Paul Smith says he wants a new contract sorted out sooner rather than later.

The 33-year-old midfielder has expressed his desire to see out his career at the club but is eager to get a contract signed.

Smith said: "I don’t want to leave the club. I’ve been here eight seasons and I’d like to finish my career here. The gaffer has indicated that he’d like me to stay and it’s up to the chairman to put something in writing and put an offer in."

With a host of players out of contract at the end of the season, Smith fears that if something isn’t done soon he could be one of those departing come May.

He said: "Nothing’s been offered so I could be one of the ones out of the door. I’ve said before the longer it goes on the more likelihood it is of me leaving, along with maybe a few others that have set their sights a little bit higher."

Smith has been a regular in the centre of the Gills midfield since arriving from Brentford in 1997 and he feels he’s still got plenty to offer. A string of battling displays from Smith led the club to move out of the relegation zone for the first time since mid-October.

He said: "If I wasn’t playing or something then I couldn’t really complain. But I’ve put in a lot of performances this season and played a lot of games again and you can’t say I’ve been riddled with injuries or anything."

Smith isn’t about to let the situation get to him and he’s keen to keep on playing for as long as possible.

"The thing is about this sort of situation is if you start to ponder about it, it would begin to mess with your head," he said. "At the moment, with seven games to go, all I want to do is play."

With so many players’ futures still uncertain, Smith believes that a mass shake-up at the end of the season could have an adverse effect on the club.

He said: "Obviously it’s down to the manager and he’ll pick and choose who he wants. And then it’s down to the chairman to sort out the contracts.

"The thing you’ve got to make sure doesn’t happen is you don’t want a situation where nine or 10 players leave. You’ve got to worry about a team gelling and with so many new players, you may find it hard for them to knit together."

Whatever the outcome, Smith believes the team’s new belief should see them keep their Championship status next year.

"Our form guide at the minute shows we can beat anyone," he said.

* KM-fm will be following Gillingham in their fight for Championship survival in every game home and away until the end of the season.

Tune in to your local KM-fm station for live updates with sports editor Simon Watts in 'Sportswatch' every Saturday from 2pm, plus score flashes from all Kent's other matches.

Listen to comprehensive post-match reaction after 5pm and get match reports and full interviews from the games involving the county's major teams on Kent Online.

KM-fm frequencies: