Aaron Christopher Barnes (born 14 October 1996) is an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a full-back for club

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

. Barnes is a product of the

Arsenal Academy The Arsenal Academy was a military academy in Columbia, South Carolina, originally established in 1842 as an independent school by the state of South Carolina. In 1845, the academy became a component of the South Carolina Military Academy (now Th ...

, where he played from under-11 level until 2013, when he joined

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...

to continue his development. He made his professional debut at Charlton and experienced a brief loan away in January 2018 at

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...

. He then made a permanent switch to Colchester United before immediately rejoining Torquay on loan for the rest of the 2017–18 season. He left Colchester at the end of his contract in summer 2019.

Career

Arsenal

Barnes was born in the London Borough of Croydon but later grew up in

Walderslade Walderslade is a large suburb in Kent to the south of Chatham split between the unitary authority of Medway and the boroughs of Maidstone and Tonbridge & Malling in South East England. It was, until 1998, fully part of Kent and is still ceremo ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and attended

Oakwood Park Grammar School Oakwood Park Grammar School is a boys grammar school with academy status located in Maidstone, United Kingdom. The school is co-educational in the sixth form (years 12 and 13). The school takes boys at the age of 11 and over by examination (11 ...

in Maidstone. He started his career in the youth team of

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

, signing for them at the age of ten in 2006 after he was spotted by scouts whilst representing Kent in a tournament in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. He progressed through the youth system but failed to earn a scholarship and was released in 2013 aged sixteen.

Charlton Athletic

Barnes signed a scholarship with

in March 2013, and after a year at the club signed his first professional contract in December 2014. For the next two years he featured predominantly in the under-18 and under-23 academy teams and was rewarded with a new one-year contract in May 2016. He made the progression into the first team during the 2016–17 season and signed a further one-year contract extension in March 2017. He made his professional debut in the final game of the season in April 2017, appearing as a late substitute for

Chris Solly Christopher James Solly (born 20 January 1991) is an English professional footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, ...

in the 3–0 victory over Swindon Town. On 12 January 2018, Barnes signed for

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

side

in a one-month loan deal. He made his club debut on 27 January in a 1–1 draw at

Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...

Colchester United

On 31 January 2018, Barnes signed for

League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

club Colchester United. He was immediately loaned back to Torquay United for the remainder of the season. He scored his first competitive goal on 10 February in Torquay's 2–1 win at

Maidenhead United Maidenhead United Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Maidenhead, Berkshire, England. They are currently members of and have played at York Road since 1871, making it the 'oldest senior football ground continuously ...

. On 4 September 2018, Barnes made his Colchester United debut starting in their 2–0 defeat by Southampton Under-21s in the

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

. On 14 May 2019, it was announced Barnes was to leave Colchester United at the end of his contract.

Dulwich Hamlet

On 30 July 2019, Barnes signed for

Dulwich Hamlet Dulwich Hamlet Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in East Dulwich in south-east London, England. They are currently members of and play at Champion Hill. History The club was formed in 1893, by Lorraine 'Pa' Wilson. T ...

for the 2019/20 season.

Welling United

Following two curtailed seasons with Dulwich due to COVID-19, he signed for fellow National League South side

Welling United Welling United Football Club is a professional football club, based in Welling in the London Borough of Bexley, England. The club's first team play in the National League South, at the sixth tier of English football. History Welling United Foot ...

for the 2021–22 season. On 9 May 2023, Barnes left Welling United.

Hythe Town

In June 2023, Barnes signed for

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...

South East Division club Hythe Town.

Ramsgate

On 31 May 2024, Barnes joined Isthmian League South East Division side

following an impressive season with divisional rivals Hythe Town.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, Aaron 1996 births Living people Footballers from the London Borough of Croydon People from Croydon English men's footballers Black British sportsmen Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football defenders Arsenal F.C. players Charlton Athletic F.C. players Torquay United F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players Dulwich Hamlet F.C. players Welling United F.C. players Hythe Town F.C. players Ramsgate F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Isthmian League players