Cheltenham Town Set To Swoop For League One Defender

Cheltenham Town are set to complete the signing of full-back Ryan Haynes from League One side Northampton Town upon the expiry of his contract, as confirmed via journalist Pete O’Rourke. 

The 28-year-old is confirmed to be leaving Sixfields once his contract comes to an end and it appears as though his next career move will take him back to the fourth tier, but this time with Michael Flynn’s Cheltenham Town ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.

How did Haynes fair last season?

Haynes experienced a difficult 2023/24 League One campaign with the Cobblers, being limited to just five appearances in all competitions and hasn’t featured in a match day squad for the Cobblers since the end of January.

From his five appearances, Haynes only started twice with both of these occurring in the EFL Trophy. However, neither of these appearances occurred in his natural left-back position, instead he featured as a left-midfielder and a central midfielder. In the campaign prior, Haynes made 32 appearances, scoring once.

What will Haynes bring to Cheltenham Town?

The full-back has experienced a large exposure to League Two football during his career thus far, making over 160 appearances in total. The vast majority of those have been with Newport County, though he has also featured for Northampton, Cambridge United and Coventry City where he began his career.

With Cheltenham having lost several experienced players such as Liam Sercombe and Sean Long, recruiting players with League Two experience is likely to be high on the club’s transfer shortlist this summer.

Haynes is versatile and has plenty of EFL experience which will benefit the younger players within the squad.

Is this a good move for the Robins?

Due to a series of high-profiled exits from the League Two side, it was important that Cheltenham Town add experience back into the squad, especially with footballers that know the difficulties of playing in the fourth tier.

Cheltenham had a difficult 2023/24 campaign but were only relegated on the final day of the season and with a new manager onboard, could the future be looking upwards for the Robins?