Darren Dennehy, a 6ft 4ins tall Republic of Ireland left sided central defender, signed for Barnet this evening after passing a medical at The Hive.

The 21-year-old, who played 19 games for Gillingham on loan from Cardiff City last season, turned down a move to the Kent club last week to link up again with Mark Stimson at Underhill.

The manager told www.barnetfc.com: "I am delighted to capture the signature of Darren on a permanent basis. I really enjoyed working with him before and his committing to Barnet shows he must like the way I work".

Dennehy, who has played seven times for the Republic U-19 side and 11 for the U-21s, was a youth player at Everton before moving to Cardiff in 2008. His website CV records that Arsenal chief scout Steve Rowley has been monitoring his progress.

Mark Stimson said that Dennehy will not figure at Thurrock tomorrow as he has not had as much training as the rest of the squad.

Footnote: www.barnetfc.com points out that Dennehy has not lost an inch since we reported him via a website link last week as 6ft 5ins. Dennehy confirmed his height when he signed.

Dennis Signy