Barrow’s new defender Niall Canavan will come into contention for their game at home to Tranmere tomorrow.
Canavan was a transfer deadline signing from Bradford City and wasn’t involved in their fine 1-0 win at Northampton on Tuesday night.
Some City fans expressed surprise that the experienced 30-year-old had been allowed to leave Valley Parade.
He had made 36 appearances for the Bantams in all competitions since signing for them last January from Plymouth Argyle.
City manager Derek Adams explained his decision to the club’s website and said: “When Niall had the opportunity to move to Barrow I had to make a decision.
“Barrow were going to give him an 18-month contract which is great for him and his family because I wasn’t in a position to do that.
“In the end it was down to me whether I let him go or not and that’s what I decided to do.
“We had things moving along and when it comes to the end of the transfer window, you have to be able to move quickly. The two players we eventually got through the door, Luke Hendrie and Nathan Delfouneso, were in the pipeline so we were just fortunate we got them in the end.”
Leeds-born Canavan had actually been in the club’s academy up until the age of 12 before moving to Scunthorpe where he eventually played 173 times.
He left Glanford Park in 2015 for Rochdale and spent three years in the north west before moving down south to Plymouth Argyle.
Canavan had been capped seven times for the Republic of Ireland Under-23’s and was a regular for Plymouth where he played 92 times.
The Bluebirds are currently 20th in the League Two table and are 10 points above the relegation zone.
