Peter Barnes wore claret and blue
DROGHEDA United’s new signing, Peter Barnes (33) sees his first spell in League of Ireland football not as a new beginning but a “new ending” after 14 years in top class football.
The former England and Manchester City star spent last summcr on the books of Bury in the English League but unable to secure a contract he moved to Malta and under Paul Mariner, ex-Ipswich Town, played eight games and scored fíve goals but “out of the blue they said they didn’t want me”, the player confessed.
Barnes who lives in Altrinham, near Manchester, hadn’t been to Ireland for 10 years before a press conference last week in the Boyne Valley Hotel, the team’s ofTicial sponsors.
“I’m looking forward to meeting the Drogheda people and travelling around the country with the team”, hc commentcd. “I certainly would not look at coming to Ireland as dropping down a level. I don’t see football that way.
“It is difficult to come into a team which is not doing too well but you’ve got to start somewhere. I want to help the team and enjoy my football. It will take me a while to settle in I suppose but hopefully the young lads will help me”, he quipped.
Barnes hopes to train three or four times a week with clubs in the North West of England including Stockport County.
His performance on Sunday left many puzzled. In what was a dogged encounter played in a mudbath the former England star looked like a substitute at the end of the game. Not because of any injected pace but the fact that he was one of the few not to get his jersey dirty.
Manager Liam Brien felt that the game didn’t suit Barnes style. “Peter has not played in four weeks and couldn’t really get into the game”, Liam added.