Bristol Rovers In The Hunt For Former Rival

Bristol Rovers are showing an interest in signing former Sheffield Wednesday and Bristol City man Jack Hunt, according to reports in Bristol World. 

Hunt played his part in Sheffield Wednesday’s remarkable playoff semi-final comeback against Peterborough United last season, scoring the penalty that sealed the Owls’ ticket to Wembley. Despite his heroics, he is now a free agent and is attracting interest from The Gas. 

 

 

Bristol World reports that Joey Barton’s side ‘have an interest in signing Jack Hunt and could make a strong push to sign him.’  The move could be seen as slightly controversial given Hunt’s history with city rivals Bristol City. The defender played 115 times for The Robins over a three-season spell at Ashton Gate before returning to Wednesday for a second spell with the club.

Predominately a right back, but with the ability to play on the right side of midfield, the signing of Hunt will bring vast experience and added quality to the squad as well as provide competition for current first-choice right-back Luca Hoole. Barton has been busy in the transfer market this summer, recruiting now fewer than nine signings, including former Bristol City defender James Wilson, as he looks to build a side capable of challenging for promotion.

The former Huddersfield Town man has played the majority of his football in the Championship and is also very experienced at League One level. The free agent is, according to The Star, attracting interest from the Championship, League One and League Two with the likes of QPR, Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City all expressing an interest. 

Writer’s View

Hunt has been promoted from League One twice already in his career, with Huddersfield and Sheffield Wednesday, and the experience and quality he would bring to The Gas could prove vital if they want to mount a challenge themselves. 

I don’t believe the fact that he has played for their city rivals will prove to be an issue, with the two sides in different divisions and the fact that Rovers have completed the James Wilson signing so recently proving it can be done. 

With Bolton and Rovers reportedly providing Hunt with League One options, the move back to Bristol is perhaps more appealing after Bolton secured the services of the much admired Josh Dacres-Cogley who looks to have made the right backs spot his own.

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Hunt, 32, is a free agent after leaving Sheffield Wednesday as a free agent at the end of last season. The former Bristol City man has close to 500 career appearances to his name with the bulk of those coming in the Football League with the likes of Huddersfield Town, Wednesday, and Bristol City.

And now he could be about to join Joey Barton’s Bristol Rovers who’ve made nine signings so far this summer, bringing in names like Connor Taylor, George Friend, and Jevani Brown, with the Gas having started the season strongly.

Barton’s men have drawn against Portsmouth and Barnsley, beating Charlton Athletic in their last outing to find themselves in 9th place of the table after the opening three games of the season.

And now with less than a couple of weeks left in this summer’s transfer window, it looks like Bristol Rovers could make another exciting potential signing in Hunt who’s had interest from the likes of QPR, Huddersfield Town, Bolton Wanderers, and Charlton already this summer.

Hunt has been searching for a new club all summer. He seems to have had some decent options in the Championship and some in the lower leagues too, and whether or not a move to Bristol Rovers would excite him remains to be seen.

He could yet seal a Championship move in the final weeks of the window and given his Bristol City past, he might not be interested in joining Barton’s side.

But the Gas are certainly on the up. They’ve had a positive summer transfer window and could yet mount a push for a spot in the top six, so the project at the club may well excite Hunt.