Former Stevenage defender Kane Smith has joined local rivals Barnet following the expiration of his contract with the Boro, as per Barnet’s official website.
Kane Smith Joins Barnet
Smith spent time in the Luton Town academy, though he was never offered a professional contract by the Hatters.
He spent a considerable amount of time in part-time football playing for Hitchin Town, though he reportedly had numerous trials with professional teams, including Crystal Palace, during his stint with the Canaries.
The right-back began to make his mark on professional football under Luke Garrard at Boreham Wood. He had a breakout season in 2017 as he played 51 games and scored four goals for the Wood.
After a major injury ruled him out for almost the entirety of the following campaign, the Englishman recovered to have three more successful campaigns in WD6, establishing himself as one of the best right-backs in non-league.
This consistent excellence earned him a move to Stevenage in the summer of 2022, though his time at the Lamex Stadium has been marred by injuries and poor form.
The former England C international made 22 appearances for Steve Evans’ side as they won promotion from League Two in his first season at the club.
He struggled to nail down a place in the Boro’s first-choice 11 after their promotion to League One, despite showing his individual brilliance on occasion.
Writer’s View
Smith joining Barnet felt like one of the most predictable transfers of the summer for many reasons, one of them being because he has always played locally.
The departure of Jordan Cropper earlier in the summer meant that the Bees did not have a natural right-back in their squad. Ryan Glover and Idris Kanu are wingers who could play as wing-backs whilst Danny Collinge is primarily a centre-back. Having a natural right-back helps to balance out the squad and may also mean that the Bees can transition to a back four more easily if they so wish.
He has impressed against Dean Brennan’s sides before when playing for Boreham Wood and the Irishman has repeatedly stated that the basis of his recruitment stems from those who have played well against his sides.
Smith is also an excellent crosser of the ball and a very good player technically. This will be pivotal to Dean Brennan’s system as a high technical level is essential if the Bees want to maintain their possession-based style of play in the EFL and Barnet’s strikers, Lee Ndlovu and Ollie Hawkins, feed off crosses into the box from which they can use their physicality to bully opposition defenders.
