Barnet FC Strengthen Squad Ahead of 2026/27 League Two Campaign

Barnet FC Strengthen Squad Ahead of 2026/27 League Two Campaign

New signings and contract extensions boost optimism as pre-season continues

24 July 2026 | Barnet Football Club Correspondent

Barnet Football Club are making positive strides in their preparations for the 2026/27 Sky Bet League Two season, with a series of new additions and contract extensions bolstering Dean Brennan’s squad.

The Bees, who finished a respectable eighth in their first season back in the Football League, have been active in the transfer market during the summer. Most recently, the club announced the signing of midfielder Oisin Gallagher on a season-long loan from Championship side Lincoln City. The young talent is expected to add creativity and energy to the midfield as Barnet look to build on last season’s solid foundation.

In addition to the loan arrival, defender Nik Tavares has committed his future to the club by signing a new contract that will keep him at The Hive until the summer of 2028. Tavares has been a reliable performer since joining, and his decision to extend reflects the stability and ambition within the squad.

Pre-season has seen Barnet notch up several encouraging results. The Bees recorded wins against Southall (8-3), Hitchin Town (2-0), and Hemel Hempstead Town (2-1), while sharing the spoils in a 2-2 draw with Watford. These fixtures have provided valuable minutes for the squad and an opportunity to integrate new players ahead of the competitive campaign which kicks off in mid-August.

Manager Dean Brennan has spoken positively about the squad’s development. “We’ve had a good pre-season so far,” he noted in recent comments. “The lads are working hard, the new signings are settling in well, and we’re building on the progress we made last year. Our aim is to be competitive from the first game and push higher up the table.”

Tomorrow, Saturday 25 July, marks Barnet’s annual Community Day at The Hive Stadium. The event, running from 10am, will feature family-friendly activities alongside two pre-season fixtures. It provides an excellent opportunity for supporters to engage with the club, meet players, and get a first look at the new 2026/27 home and away kits that were unveiled earlier this summer.

Barnet’s second season in League Two presents both challenges and opportunities. Having adapted well to the step up from the National League, the club is targeting consistency and an improved league position. The retention of key players combined with targeted recruitment suggests a squad capable of competing for a play-off place.

Off the pitch, the club continues to emphasise its community roots. The upcoming Community Day underscores this commitment, with activities designed to bring fans, families, and local residents together. Such initiatives have long been a hallmark of Barnet FC and help strengthen the bond between the team and its supporters.

As the transfer window remains open, further additions may be expected, but the current focus is on fine-tuning the team ahead of the league opener. With an experienced manager and a motivated group of players, optimism is high at The Hive.

Supporters will be eager to see how the new-look Bees perform in the coming weeks. Pre-season has been promising, and the Community Day offers the perfect platform to celebrate the club’s progress and look forward to what promises to be another exciting campaign in League Two.

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Home of Barnet FC

Opened 2013

Capacity 6,500

History (from Wikipedia)

Barnet F.C. chairman Anthony Kleanthous had sought to move the club from its long term home at Underhill Stadium since the 1990s due to the poor facilities at the ground. Various attempts to move to Barnet Copthall athletics stadium or to the greenbelt site directly to the south of Underhill were both unsuccessful, with then deputy prime minister John Prescott over-ruling a move to Copthall in 2001 after planning permission had initially been granted.[2]

Construction of a stadium at the Harrow council-owned Prince Edward Playing Fields in Canons Park had originally begun in early 2003, specifically intended as a new home for local non-league club Wealdstone F.C. In April 2004, with the building work more than 25% completed, Wealdstone F.C.'s investment partners in the project, a private company called Stadia Investment Group, went into liquidation and this caused the construction work at the site to be brought to a sudden halt due to lack of funds to pay the builders.[3] With Wealdstone F.C. unable to afford the completion of the project on their own, there was no further progress at the site for two years.

Harrow London Borough Council then decided to put the site up for tender in 2006. Barnet F.C. bought the tender, and with it the right to occupy the site which they stated they would use purely as a training centre, and not as a new home stadium. It was a condition of the tender that the stadium must be completed by the new owners for the use of Wealdstone F.C., but this did not happen and Wealdstone F.C. received no recompense for their initial investment into the ground.[4]

Having used the surrounding site as a training centre, Barnet F.C. eventually moved completely to the stadium in summer 2013, ostensibly as a result of a disagreement with Barnet London Borough Council with regards to the lease of the land surrounding their home since 1907, Underhill Stadium,[5] as well as the limited facilities at Underhill restricting the club's income. The awarding of the Barnet Copthall site to Saracens F.C., effectively ended Barnet F.C.'s hopes of ever moving to that site, accelerating the move to the Hive further.[6]

The club originally claimed they intended the use of the stadium at the Hive to be a temporary arrangement, with the long-term aim to build a 10,000-capacity stadium back in the London Borough of Barnet. However that changed in 2015 [7] with the chairman announcing the club would no longer actively search for a home elsewhere.[8] Initially there was a restriction on the lease of the Hive that prevented its use for Football League matches, however Barnet F.C. were granted a 10-year change to this condition which came into effect in June 2015. In 2018 Kleanthous purchased the freehold for the site from the London Borough of Harrow and so this restriction no longer applies.

Things to do nearby.