Stevenage left back makes League One switch

Defender Joe Martin has left Stevenage on loan today, joining League One side Bristol Rovers until January.

The 29-year old is a left-back also capable of playing in midfield, and has over 300 senior appearances to his name at sides such as Gillingham, Blackpool and Millwall.

He was a regular feature for Stevenage last season, making 45 appearances in all competitions, but hasn’t figured under manager Dino Maamria.

Martin was Millwall for two seasons, playing 23 League One games in the campaign in which they gained promotion to the Championship. He spent his youth career with both West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur, representing England at U16 and U17 level.

The Gas have been short of options at left back ever since the departure of Lee Brown who joined Portsmouth in the summer and Marc Bola returned to Arsenal having been on loan at the club.

Our View

On paper, Martin is a quality player and is perhaps returning to a level that suits him best. Having been promoted with Millwall a couple of years ago, he understands the level. Even though teams change, the intensity and challenges do not. League One offers a rich and poor contrast, with the haves of the Championship meeting the have nots of League Two in a real challenging division.

Martin might not play much for Rovers, but strangely he won’t be missed at Stevenage where he hasn’t kicked a ball this season.

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