League One side signs ex Hartlepool United loan star

Dan Kemp, a former Hartlepool United loanee, has signed for League One club Stevenage.

The 25-year-old scored nine goals in 16 appearances on loan at Pools in 2023, including a stunning hat-trick away at Grimsby, nearly propelling John Askey’s team to an unexpected escape from relegation back to the National League.

Even Kemp’s scorching form couldn’t save Pools, who were relegated from League Two on the season’s penultimate weekend, but the attacker’s performances left an indelible mark.

Kemp, a West Ham and Chelsea academy graduate, had a similarly lethal loan stay with Swindon in the first half of this season, scoring 16 goals and contributing eight assists while winning the Robins’ player of the year title despite being recalled by parent club MK Dons in January.

He scored three more goals after returning to Buckinghamshire, but was released by Mike Williamson’s team at the end of the season.

Kemp, unsurprisingly, drew a lot of interest after it was announced he would be a free agent, and Stevenage, who finished eighth in League One last season, signed him.

The forward, who spent six months on loan at the Lamex in 2020, joins the Boro as their second acquisition of the summer, following striker Louis Appere.

And manager Alex Revell confessed he was “delighted” with his team’s start to their summer recruitment.

“Just like Louis, Dan is a player we specifically targeted to add to the group we have,” he told Stevenage’s club website.

“He has been prolific while on loan in League Two and we’re delighted to welcome him back to Stevenage.”