Stockport County: Dave Challinor, Simon Wilson predictions on “outstanding” Louie Barry skill were bang on | OneFootball

The Hatters pair knew exactly what they were getting with the Aston Villa loanee

Stockport County signing Louie Barry up for a second loan spell was a no-brainer, but his first spell came as more of a risk to the Hatters.

The Aston Villa man was coming off the back of two relatively quiet loan spells with MK Dons and Salford City.

Despite that, manager Dave Challinor and director of football Simon Wilson felt they’d seen enough, and were delighted to land his temporary switch to Edgeley Park.

Their faith in the young forward was repaid in spades in the coming 2023/24 season.

County bosses made strong assessments on Barry

“Louie is a dribbler, an exciting, pacey forward who has the ability to beat players and will certainly get people off their seats,” Challinor said on landing Barry.

He was delighted with the signing, claiming that the Villa loanee had been their top target in that position.

Wilson was similarly bold about what he expected from the forward on the pitch.

The director of football said: “He is an outstanding one v one player who can scare the life out of defenders.

“He is an outstanding one v one player who can scare the life out of defenders.”

They were strong words from the pair, given the fact that over two loan spells in the previous season — with MK and Salford — Barry had played 41 games and scored just three goals.

It wasn’t a terrible record for a player only just on the cusp of leaving his teenage years, but it felt like a climb down from the six goals in 14 appearances he’d managed in another temporary spell at Swindon Town the season before.

Challinor and Wilson were proved right

That patchy previous record was perhaps why other teams hesitated in bringing him in, but the Hatters were in no doubt about pouncing for his signature.

It proved a shrewd move; Barry netted nine goals and provided four assists in 20 appearances for County in the 2023/24 season, undoubtedly a key contribution to their ultimate League Two title win.

He likely would have scored more, too, had it not been for an injury sustained away at Crewe Alexandra which ruled him out for the majority of the second half of the season.

Barry immediately got the County faithful onside, with his ability to effortlessly glide past his man and rush towards the byline, as Challinor and Wilson predicted, either getting off a shot himself or laying it across the face of goal.

“Scaring the life out of defenders” may have seemed a slight overstatement, but it proved nothing of the sort; multiple opposition defenders would often be needed to nullify Barry’s threat.

Challinor singling out Barry’s dribbling looks a strong assessment in hindsight, as the ball sticks to the forward like glue, even when running at speed, a skill that had been slightly lacking in the squad since the County boss’ arrival.

Going back in for Barry was a no-brainer

Barry was clearly ready for a step up after his thrilling, albeit brief, performance in League Two.

Thankfully, his goals came as part of an incredible season for the Hatters, who won the League Two title, earning passage to League One in the process.

County owner Mark Stott had made clear that he wanted to pull off an audacious permanent deal for the promising youngster, but in the end, was forced to settle for another loan.

Whether Stott ever manages to get his wish remains to be seen, but getting Barry back in any capacity was a result.

Despite the jump in division, Barry had equalled his goal tally from the previous inside 13 appearances in 2024/25, displaying the same electric excitement in forward positions for County — claiming a strong contender for goal of the season with an incredible long-range chip just minutes into the new season.

Challinor and Wilson’s initial assessments may have seemed ambitious compared to Barry’s headline stats at the time, but everything the young forward has done since has proved the pair knew exactly what they were talking about.