2026-27 Recruitment Plan for Stevenage

Player Decisions

Retain

Chem Campbell, Joe Knight, Jovan Malcolm, Filip Marschall, Jack Taylor, Lewis Freestone, Jordan Houghton, Luther James-Wildin, Jasper Pattenden, Jordan Roberts, Dan Butler, Dan Kemp, Phoenix Patterson, Carl Piergianni, Jamie Reid, Louis Thompson, Saxon Earley, Dan Phillips, Lenny Brown, Frank Norris, Max Woodford

Release

Taye Ashby-Hammond, Bez Lubala, Tyreece Simpson, Dan Sweeney, Mathaeus Roberts, Matt Phillips, Ellis Bates

Lose

Harvey White, Charlie Goode

Loan End

Gassan Ahadme, Harry Cornick

Loan Out

Joe Knight, Max Woodford, Lenny Brown, Frank Norris

Sign

Olly Sanderson, Terry Taylor, Josh Magennis

Retained Squad

New Signings

Dan Barden (Norwich City – free)

Stevenage have already got a #1 going into 2026-27, and so in light of Taye Ashby-Hammond moving on for pastures new Alex Revell will be looking to add a backup goalkeeper to their ranks. One player that is available after being let go at the end of the 2025-26 campaign by Norwich City is youngster Dan Barden. 

Barden will be looking to get another Football League opportunity at the very least, and after being let go by The Canaries I think that signing for a top-end, League One side such as Stevenage represents an attractive next step for him. Murphy Cooper has firmly established himself as being one of the top goalkeepers in League One, and I think that in order to keep him on his toes and on the top of his game then you want to make sure that you sign a goalkeeper that can provide the right level of competition. 

One thing that I particularly like about Barden is that he has got the will to grasp the opportunity and a great work ethic, having come off the back of a difficult period in his personal life after getting through a cancer battle. A big thing that I look for when signing players is ensuring that they are the right characters, and in this regard Barden is a hugely coachable and hard-working player that I feel would relish the opportunity of providing competition to an already established goalkeeper. He has not ripped up trees where he has been out on loan, and so I think that the prospect of signing for a League One team would be a good option for him. 

In terms of the type of goalkeepers that I would typically look for, Barden ticks the boxes. He is a physically imposing figure standing at 6ft 5in, and he dominates his penalty area well. I like goalkeepers to have the physicality to come out and push through his box in coming to claim, and who can handle himself in congested penalty areas. I want a goalkeeper that is going to come and dominate attackers, impose himself and have a large frame such that attackers have to work hard to score past them. 

25-years-old is no age for a goalkeeper, and so I wouldn’t be discouraged by the fact that he hasn’t been able to hold down a position as a #1 to this point. Finding a #2 goalkeeper is always a trade off with experience and the fact that most goalkeepers will often be looking to get a #1 opportunity, and so I think the carrot of signing in League One would be a good carrot for Barden and provide Stevenage with a decent project. He isn’t a young and untested goalkeeper, and so I feel he ticks the boxes for what they’re looking for. On a free transfer, I think it is a sensible option.

Terence Vancooten (Burton Albion – fee)

One player on this list that will need little in the way of an introduction to Stevenage fans having played for the club previously is Terence Vancooten. The defender is on the books at fellow League One side Burton Albion, yet with The Brewers’ seemingly willing to entertain bids for their players for the right price this summer then it wouldn’t surprise me if there were further departures to follow Udoka Gowdin-Malife and Jake Beesley out of the door. As such, I think that a deal to re-sign Vancooten may be of interest to Alex Revell. 

Stevenage have got one of the smaller squads in League One, and so they rely on signing composite players that are capable of covering a number of bases. As a prospective signing, I think that the 28-year-old represents a very sensible piece of business. He is a good age, with experience of the league. He knows the club, having spent seven years with Stevenage between 2017 and 2024. He can play as a right-back in a four and as a wide centre-back in a five. He has a good physical profile and a strong out-and-out defender. 

Certainly in the defensive third of the pitch, I don’t see Revell taking any risks with the additions that he makes to the group and so signing someone with the familiarity of the group, of Revell, and the way that he wants to play definitely has its attraction. The best defensive units rely on the relationships between pairings and how they operate as a collective, and the fact that there is a large proportion of this Stevenage side that remain from the last time that Vancooten was at the club is hugely beneficial. 

Burton Albion will not want to sell the defender given that they are already a fair way behind in their preparations for the new season, but I could absolutely see this signing coming to fruition going into 2026-27. I feel that Stevenage could do with adding a right-sided defensive option that can play as a full-back or as a centre-back and equally comfortable playing in a three or a four depending on how Revell sets them up, and so signing a player that has indeed played in both systems in this Stevenage side makes him a credible candidate.

It might not be the flashy type that raises the ceiling for Stevenage in their aspirations to get promoted from League One, but in terms of maintaining the strong defensive foundations on which their success has been built then I think he is worth a look.

Jude Arthurs (Bromley – free)

One of the concerns that I have looking at this Stevenage side is that their midfield lacks the creativity and intricacy between the lines to dominate the ball and open teams up. They have retained one of the best athletes in the league in Dan Phillips, and they have added a tenacious, tough-tackling, ball-winner to their ranks in the form of Terry Taylor. With Harvey White departing the club to join Plymouth Argyle, I definitely feel that there is a void in the centre of the park for them to go and add a more technically competent and risk-taking midfielder that can get on the ball and create. As such, I think that Arthurs could be worth a look. 

Jude Arthurs comes off the back of a strong campaign – and indeed a couple of years – with Bromley, and made 48 appearances for The Ravens as they won the League Two title. The 24-year-old has particularly impressed me last season and in the last 12-18 months with the maturity in which he plays, and the development he has undergone since Andy Woodman took charge. He broke through as an exciting young prospect within Bromley’s midfield, yet has established himself as a fixture of their engine room, regularly holding the armband and has taken on responsibility as being one of the main protagonists of their creative channels. 

One thing that I particularly like about Arthurs is how well-rounded his game is. Often, you’ll find a midfielder that is good at one side of the game and potentially at the expense of the other, yet the Bromley youngster excels both on and off the ball. As is a prerequisite of any player within this Andy Woodman system, Arthur has developed a physicality against the ball and is combative in winning it back, yet when he has turned over the play he has got the delicacy and craft to create. The 24-year-old has particularly undergone a notable physical development in the last year or so, with Arthurs developing a greater build and he now makes efficient use of his body. 

The Bromley midfielder is your archetypal box-to-box type, and as such I think he represents a nice complementary skillset to what Stevenage have currently got. They have got two ball-winners in Phillips and Taylor, and a ball-player in Jordan Houghton that can sit and control the tempo of a game at the base, whereas Jude Arthurs is well-suited to be a little more aggressive at the tip of the midfield and in higher areas, forcing mistakes closer to the opposition goal and then having the technical quality to play. 

Despite being promoted as a key component part of The Ravens’ side under Andy Woodman, Arthurs is yet to sign a new deal with the League Two champions and so as it stands is to leave the club this summer. If he is to leave, I think that will likely join a side that are at the top-end of League One as that represents the likely progression after the work that he has done in a Bromley shirt. With Bromley being one of the ‘new boys’ in League One, I feel that joining a Stevenage side that ended up in the play-offs last season would definitely represent a good fit for that.

John McAtee (Bolton Wanderers – loan)

One area that I think Stevenage should be looking to strengthen during the summer is in the #10 roles. If they are to go one better next season and win promotion from league One, I feel that they have got to be better with the ball and have more about them in terms of being able to open teams up. One player that I feel may be available on loan and would represent a good bit of business for Stevenage if they could get him is Bolton Wanderers attacking midfielder John McAtee. 

I feel that McAtee is most effective playing as a #10 in behind the striker whereby he can pick up space between the lines, get on the half turn and open teams up with that delicate weight of pass. Aside from Dan Kemp, Stevenage lack that profile of players that commit players, dribble with the ball and create chances against teams that sit back. Opposition sides were able to have joy at the back end of last season sitting back and putting the onus on Stevenage to create – something they failed to do on a number of occasions – and so if this Stevenage side are to progress then they’ve got to be better protagonists in possession. 

McAtee is a player that I have always been a fan of from when I saw him play at Grimsby Town, and I think he is exactly the type of player that this Stevenage side are crying out for in the final third. He is a proficient dribbler, quick feet, deft touches round the corner, and is wonderfully technical in taking risks. Stevenage have managed to get success by being a side that doesn’t want the ball and being difficult to play against, whereas McAtee is a player that wants the ball and wants to receive it in tight spaces. I think you want your creative players central to the play, and so signing a player of McAtee’s profile as a #10 is key.

With The Trotters having been promoted to the Championship, McAtee is a player that I think may well be surplus to requirements in Steven Schumacher’s side going into 2026-27. McAtee played 32 times in all competitions for Bolton Wanderers, only 23 times in the league, and after the turn of the year he only played more than a half of football in six games for The Trotters. His involvement towards the end of the campaign was limited to coming off the bench, and so as Schumacher looks to fine tune the squad ahead of what will likely be a challenging campaign for them in the Championship McAtee may be one that is allowed to leave. 

McAtee is still contracted to The Trotters until the end of the 2026-27 side, and while they are a well-run club financially and may well feel that they have got the strong foundations such that they can be a little bit more adventurous in the market, I don’t envisage Alex Revell shelling out a fee for the attacking player. As such, if he does sign for Stevenage then the move would have to be a loan deal. That said, I feel that he is a League One player and so leaving Bolton Wanderers in the summer is a sensible one for his career in terms of getting the volume of game time that he will be looking for. If he does depart The Trotters, I think that he will be looking to touch himself as a top-end, League One side having already been promoted out of the division and so Stevenage is a good fit.

Dylan Jones (Norwich City – loan)

The final player on this list that I have picked out as a potential target for Stevenage to sign in the summer is Dylan Jones. The young forward is currently on the books of Championship side Norwich City, and is someone that I think will be in high demand ahead of the 2026-27 campaign for a potential move. That said, I think that the chance to play in League One football could be a good challenge for the youngster and so The Canaries may well feel that gives him the right environment in which he can develop as a player. 

Dylan Jones is a player that I have been a fan of from the time that I first saw him when he was at Plymouth Parkway. With Parkway, Jones played predominantly off the right-hand side whereby he could isolate defenders and attack space with his speed and running power, yet he is capable of playing anywhere across the front. Alex Revell has to use his budget to full effect in terms of extracting as much value out of it, and so the fact that Jones is capable of playing through the middle as a #9 or out wide as a winger gives them good options in how they utilise Jones within their system. They opt to play largely a 4-2-3-1, and I think that his best position is off the right as a winger, yet he could easily play more centrally in behind Josh Magennis as a secondary striker with the agility to make runs. 

As a profile, Dylan Jones is a quick-footed, pacy, imposing attacker that is a competent dribbler, clever movement, and is effective as a ball-carrier with a long-legged, rangy running style. He brings a lovely intensity to the attacking play to always be on the move, making runs and offering himself as an option in beyond the play. I think that he is the type of player that will always keep defenders guessing given that he is equally dangerous when making runs in behind and pinning defenders back, but equally in holding the width, isolating defenders and looking to go 1v1. 

In terms of what Stevenage have currently got at the top end of the pitch, I feel that Jones provides them with a different profile. Jones is someone that wants to pick the ball up, get on the turn, be direct and run at players. Josh Magennis is a physical #9 that wants to provide a platform for others, while I feel Jamie Reid does his best work just off the front in and around the edge of the box. Jones is someone that is going to stretch teams, play on the last line and utilise his pace and power in getting to the byline. He is most effective when stepping onto the play, and so I feel he will play his best football playing off the right and making out-to-in runs towards central areas and moving across the ball. 

The youngster will be looking to go out on loan again during 2026-27 given that opportunities in the Championship with The Canaries are likely few and far between, and so I feel that he will be available again if Stevenage wanted to sign him. While he only had a brief time on loan with Tranmere Rovers and has got a small sample size when it comes to EFL football, I liked what I saw from the youngsters in Rovers colours and I would retain full faith in the forward as being able to adjust to the intensity of league football.