Having brought in 12 new players to the club so far this summer, many will be labelling Barnet as the team to beat in the upcoming National League season.
Dean Brennan added another three players to his squad on Monday afternoon with Myles Kenlock and Billy Clifford arriving from league rivals Ebbsfleet United.
The permanent signing of last season’s loan star Anthony Hartigan to complete the trio has propelled the Harrow-based outfit to the top of the pile to gain promotion in the EFL next year.
It represents a summer of Brennan keeping to his word of rebuilding and upgrading his squad after the unexpected play-off loss to Solihull Moors back in April. However, despite a new team’s worth of playing staff arriving at The Hive, it should be remembered that departures have facilitated the new arrivals.
Six players were released at the end of the last campaign whilst Connor Stevens and Dale Gorman also left the club to sign for Chesham Utd and Woking. Taking that into account, four players so far have been added to the numbers Brennan worked with last year.
Competition for places appears healthy in almost all positions across the squad, something Chesterfield fans will point to through their title-winning campaign that kept every player on their toes.
Like the Spireites, Brennan will be expecting his new recruits to step up to the plate and guide Barnet back to the Football League after a six-year absence.
Whilst scoring goals hasn’t been a problem due to the exploits of Nicke Kabamba, coupled with solid contributions from Harry Pritchard and Callum Stead, attention has always been at the other end of the pitch with, at times, the ability to concede far too many goals.
The Irishman has been targeting players from all ends of the footballing spectrum with Hartigan and Joe Kizzi arriving from the Football League, with a fee being paid for the latter, something Barnet are not renowned for undertaking.
Talent from the lower leagues have also been on the radar. Highly rated Joe Rye joining from Worthing and Finley Wilkinson from Hitchin Town has shown the Bees boss has one eye on the here-and-now and also in developing some of the best talent in non-league football.
It is well-known that recruitment plans for the club begin at least some six months before the end of the season and in a few cases, players have been tracked for 12-24 months to get an accurate picture of their fit beyond their football talent.
Speculation remains over a summer EFL move for defender Danny Collinge who has been a revelation throughout his two years in Barnet colours whilst Idris Kanu has had his admirers despite an injury-hit and inconsistent campaign last time out.
While a few of their competitors have also made good strides in the market and with over six weeks still to go before the season kicks off, there is plenty of time for others to make their mark and put themselves in the conversation for the title.
There is no one club expected to run away with the title and the playing field will likely be more level. Barnet and Brennan, however, seem determined to go one better than last year’s second place and blow everyone else out of the water.
