Jack King first turned out in Boro’s red and white after joining us on loan from Scunthorpe United at the end of August 2016. Such was his impact during his temporary time with the club, however, that boss Darren Sarll swooped to make the move a permanent one; King becoming a fully-fledged Stevenage player at the end of January 2017.

A versatile player who came to us with the ability to play in defence or midfield, King came to us on a five-month deal. It was a good time to arrive; Sarll facing a shortfall in players at that point of the season. More often than not, he’d feature in midfield. By the time his stay at the Lamex was over, however, the centre of defence had become home.

Jack King: Before Boro’

Starting his senior career at Swansea City in 2003, the Oxford-born player was soon on the move closer to home; first at Didcot Town and then at Brackley Town in 2005. Didcot must have had a pull about it, as he was back there before the end of 2005 and stayed there until 2009.

The next ports of call were Farnborough (2009) and Woking (2011). Yet, the big leap up into the Football League was just around the corner. And the man who took him from the Cards into the League? Why, it was Graham Westley; then manager of Preston North End. It was the start of a three-year stay at Deepdale.

He featured a number of times for Preston; chipping in with the odd goal along the way too. And he was even part of the squad that won promotion to the Championship in 2015. At the end of that campaign, though, he left the North West on a free transfer to join Scunthorpe United.

He appeared fairly regularly for the Iron during the 2015-6 campaign. With his experience at League One level, it was clear that King had a role to play at the Lamex during his time in Hertfordshire. And such was his impact that Boro’ swooped to sign the midfielder on a permanent basis at the end of January 2017 shortly after his loan spell had expired.