| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matthew Brian Barnes-Homer[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1986-01-25)25 January 1986 (age 39) | ||
| Place of birth | Dudley, England | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Hednesford Town | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2001–2004 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004 | Syracuse Salty Dogs | 10 | (1) |
| 2004 | Aldershot Town | ||
| 2005 | Hednesford Town | ||
| 2005–2006 | Bromsgrove Rovers | 24 | (4) |
| 2006 | Tividale | ||
| 2006–2007 | Willenhall Town | (15) | |
| 2007 | Wycombe Wanderers | 1 | (0) |
| 2007–2010 | Kidderminster Harriers | 98 | (45) |
| 2009 | →Luton Town (loan) | 10 | (15) |
| 2010–2012 | Luton Town | 64 | (40) |
| 2011–2012 | →Rochdale (loan) | 5 | (1) |
| 2012 | Nuneaton Town | 4 | (0) |
| 2012 | Östersunds FK | 11 | (5) |
| 2012–2013 | Macclesfield Town | 37 | (29) |
| 2013–2014 | Forest Green Rovers | 18 | (15) |
| 2014 | Cambridge United | 14 | (10) |
| 2014 | →Tamworth (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2014 | Whitehawk | 9 | (0) |
| 2014 | →Macclesfield Town (loan) | 6 | (5) |
| 2014–2015 | Macclesfield Town | 24 | (10) |
| 2015–2016 | Aldershot Town | 15 | (5) |
| 2015 | →Kidderminster Harriers (loan) | 7 | (7) |
| 2016 | Farnborough | 5 | (0) |
| 2016 | Wilmington Hammerheads | 29 | (3) |
| 2017 | Brackley Town | 1 | (0) |
| 2017 | Kettering Town | 0 | (0) |
| 2017–2021 | AFC Telford United | 20 | (1) |
| 2017 | →Halesowen Town (dual reg.) | 3 | (0) |
| 2021 | →Stourbridge (dual reg.) | 1 | (0) |
| 2022 | Bromsgrove Sporting | 6 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | Gloucester City | 13 | (2) |
| 2023 | Brackley Town | 0 | (0) |
| 2024– | Hednesford Town | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2009–2011 | England C | 5 | (2) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:35, 28 March 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18:00, 23 April 2022 (UTC) | |||
Matthew Brian Barnes-Homer (born 25 January 1986) is an English professionalfootballer who plays forHednesford Town.
Barnes-Homer started his career as a youth player atWolverhampton Wanderers, where he spent three years. In 2004 he transferred toAldershot Town. He then played for various wasnon-league clubs in his local West Midlands region between 2005 and 2007 untilLeague Two sideWycombe Wanderers signed him on a short-term contract in March 2007. He was released shortly afterwards, where he joinedConference National sideKidderminster Harriers. After a lean first season at the club, Barnes-Homer established himself as top scorer in the next campaign with 25 goals, averaging almost one goal for every two games.
A similar goal return during2009–10 prompted interest from formerFootball League club Luton Town, who signed him in January 2010. He finished the2010–11 season as Luton's top scorer with 29 goals. He left Luton in early 2012, going on to spend four months at Swedish sideÖstersunds FK, before returning to the Conference withMacclesfield Town for the start of the2012–13 season. In August 2013, he signed a two-year contract withForest Green Rovers. On 10 January 2014, Barnes-Homer signed forCambridge United on a free transfer until the end of the season.
Born inDudley,West Midlands,[2] Barnes-Homer began his career as a 15-year-old trainee atWolverhampton Wanderers, but was released three years later at the end of the2003–04 season.He then joinedHednesford Town, where he made one substitute appearance, and was signed byBromsgrove Rovers[3] in April 2005 after impressing in Bromsgrove's reserve side.[4]
Barnes-Homer had a short spell atTividale[5] before he joinedWillenhall Town in August 2008 and scored a hat-trick on his debut againstStourbridge.[6] After impressive performances for Willenhall, he joinedLeague Two clubWycombe Wanderers in March 2007 after a successful trial.[7][8] However, he was one of several players released at the end of the2006–07 season after Wycombe failed to reach the League Twoplay-offs.[9]
He joinedConference Premier sideKidderminster Harriers in July 2007 after featuring in pre-season games.[10] After scoring 6 league goals during the2007–08 season, he signed a new one-year contract in April 2008.[11]
Barnes-Homer scored 21 goals thenext season, ending the campaign as highest goalscorer at the club as Kidderminster finished narrowly outside the play-offs. He signed a new two-year contract with the club in June 2009.[12]
Barnes-Homer began the2009–10 season for Kidderminster as he had finished the last, with a return of roughly one goal in every two games.[8] His goalscoring form did not go unnoticed and, on 26 November 2009, Barnes-Homer joinedLuton Town, initially on a one-month loan deal. On 13 January 2010 the transfer led to a permanent two-and-a-half-year contract, for which Luton paid Kidderminster a five-figure fee, believed to be around £75,000.[13][14]
Barnes-Homer made a below-average start to his Luton career, with just three goals in 20 league games. Luton managerRichard Money cited the fact that Barnes-Homer had lost his stepfather mid-season as reason for his poor form.[15] Money believed that in the following season, Luton fans would see the real Matthew Barnes-Homer and that he would be akin to a brand new signing.[15] This faith from the manager paid off, as Barnes-Homer scored five goals in the opening three games of the2010–11 season, including a hat-trick away againstKettering Town. He fell out of favour with new Luton managerGary Brabin towards the end of the season, being used primarily as a substitute, including in the club's play-off final defeat toAFC Wimbledon. Barnes-Homer ended the season as Luton's top scorer with 19 goals, 16 of which came in the league.
He started Luton's first game of the2011–12 season, though was substituted after an hour. On 25 August 2011, Barnes-Homer joinedLeague One sideRochdale on loan until January 2012, making only five league appearances in five months.[16] He left Luton on 1 January 2012, his contract terminated by mutual consent.[17] On the decision to terminate Barnes-Homer's contract, Luton manager Gary Brabin stated "I just felt from the beginning of the season that it wasn't going to work out, that's why we decided to loan him to Rochdale. It hasn't worked out for him there and I didn't feel it was going to be right for him to come back."[18]
On 24 February 2012, Barnes-Homer joinedConference North sideNuneaton Town.[19] He made only one appearance for the club in theBirmingham Senior Cup before leaving on 20 March to join Swedish third division sideÖstersunds FK.[20] He played in 11 league games, scoring twice, before returning to England on 27 June to sign forMacclesfield Town in theConference Premier.[21]
On 5 January 2013, he scored both goals late on in a third round FA Cup tie for Macclesfield against Championship leadersCardiff City in a 2–1 victory, putting his team through to the fourth round for the first time.[22]
Having netted 21 times in league and cup competitions in the 2012–13 season for Macclesfield, he trialled withLeague One sideNotts County but failed to earn a deal. On 27 July 2013, he featured for Conference Premier side Alfreton in a pre-season friendly and just two days later he played over an hour forForest Green Rovers in their friendly clash withYeovil Town.[23] After another trial appearance againstWeston-super-Mare, he signed a two-year contract with Forest Green on 5 August 2013.[24] He made a goal scoring debut for the club on 10 August 2013 in an 8–0 win againstHyde.[25] In January 2014, just six months into his two-year contract, he moved on a free transfer to Forest Green's league rivalsCambridge United.[26] On 28 February, Barnes-Homer joinedTamworth on loan. The following day he was selected in the starting eleven againstFC Halifax Town which Cambridge drew 1–1 despite dominating for longer periods.[27] Cambridge released Barnes-Homer on 27 May 2014.
Barnes-Homer joinedAFC Telford United in 2017, later taking a coaching position with the club.[28] In October 2021, Barnes-Homer joinedSouthern League Premier Division Central sideStourbridge on a dual-registration basis.[29]
On 24 March 2022, Barnes-Homer signed forSouthern League Premier Division Central sideBromsgrove Sporting.[30]
On 3 June 2022,Bromsgrove Sporting confirmed that Barnes-Homer, along with teammates Tom Taylor and Miro Pais had all agreed deals to stay with the club for the2022–23 season.[31]
In March 2024, Barnes-Homer joinedHednesford Town.[32]
Barnes-Homer was named in theEngland C squad that playedPoland under-23's on 17 November 2009. He scored the winning goal on his debut in a 2–1 victory.[33] On 9 February 2011, Barnes-Homer scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win againstBelgium under-23s that put England C into the final of the International Challenge Trophy.[34]
In September 2023, Barnes-Homer joinedHavant & Waterlooville as assistant manager, reuniting with manager Steve King whom he had worked with at Gloucester City.[35]
In December 2023, Barnes-Homer along with King were sacked by the club.[36]
