Farnham Town are thrilled to confirm that defender Jack Dean has agreed to remain with the Club for the 2024/25 season.
The 23-year-old made the move to The Memorial Ground last summer after narrowly missing out on promotion from the Southern League Premier South with Bracknell Town via the playoffs, linking up with his younger brother, Owen, for the first time in senior football.
Jack became an immediate mainstay in the starting line-up, playing the full 90 minutes in each of the first 12 games of the season, of which the Town won all but one of those games – with the exception being a narrow 2-1 defeat in the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round to eventual Southern League Premier South champions Chesham United. He scored his first goal for the Club on the opening day of the season in a 4-0 win at Harefield United.
His campaign was derailed at the end of September when he suffered a nasty ankle ligament injury at the death of a 3-1 away win at Fleet Town which caused him to miss the next the next 16 weeks of the season. He made his return to the side on January 24th playing the majority of the game in the 3-2 win over Spelthorne Sports.
From that point on, Jack resumed his role as an established starter in the back four and split his time between right-back and centre-back as Farnham were forced to shuffle the pack amid other various defensive injuries and departures over that time.
After making his return from injury, Jack started 21 of the final 25 games of the season across all competitions, with three of those four missed games coming as a result of a suspension, and picked up a handful of key goals along the way. The most notable being the opening goal away at Spelthorne Sports which ended up winning the Goal of the Season award. In total, he netted four times and provided five assists in 2023/24.
Still a young player who continues to improve but has experience further up the pyramid, everyone at Farnham is excited by the prospect of seeing Jack return next season.
Manager Paul Johnson said: “When I learned Jack might become available, I knew he would be a great fit for what we’re trying to build here. Firstly, he’s a top player, but also he is familiar to a lot of the boys we had having played with Daz, Ruley and Guy the season before, as well as being Owen’s brother – he was a well-known and well-liked face around the Club. He was a great addition to the dressing room in all aspects.
“He showed from the first game onwards the quality he would bring to the side, and can play multiple positions in the back four to a high level. His engine is superb and he’s a goal threat which is always a bonus with defenders. Jack was sorely missed during the middle of the season but looked like he never missed a beat when he returned.
“Hopefully, he can stay injury-free next season and we get to see more of him. He’s a top player and we couldn’t be happier about the news that he’s staying with us.”