Barney Stewart signs new Falkirk contract after scoring hat-trick against Hibs

Falkirk boss John McGlynn expressed his delight at being able to tie down Barney Stewart to a longer contract after the forward bagged a hat-trick last Saturday against Hibs.

The 21-year-old striker joined the Bairns in October 2024 from East of Scotland outfit Heriot-Watt University and he contributed to the club’s Scottish Championship title success after returning from a loan back at the student side. Stewart joined Dunfermline Athletic on loan earlier this season after suffering an injury in pre-season, and he excelled for the Pars - scoring six goals in 11 second-tier outings. He also made his Scotland U21 debut before returning to Falkirk in January.

And since then, the forward has started four top flight outings and announced himself to the Premiership last Saturday - scoring a sensational hat-trick against Hibs during a 4-1 rout of the Easter Road outfit.

McGlynn hails new Falkirk deal for Stewart

Confirming that Stewart had actually agreed a new deal before that match, McGlynn beamed: “I’m delighted Barney has decided to extend his contract with us. It was all agreed on Friday and signed this morning. Barney has impressed us from the minute he walked in the door. He’s got a long way to go, but he’s also come along way as well in the last year. His goals at the weekend paint a great picture. As a team that gets a lot of crosses into the box, we should have been scoring more goals over the past couple of months, maybe eve years, so to get someone who instinctively gets on the end of those crosses is brilliant.

“He’s got a lot of natural attributes; his size, his height, he’s a powerful boy and he’s got good pace. We’ve now got two really good young strikers signed up for the future in Barney and Ben Parkinson. We’re really looking forward to continuing Barney’s progress and seeing him score more goals for the team.”

Delighted Stewart added: “I’m absolutely buzzing to sign a extension, it was a no brainer for me! It’s been an incredible experience since I joined the club just over a year ago and I love it here. It’s an amazing squad and dressing room, it’s been great working under the Gaffer and Paul, and I’ve got a really great connection with the fans.

“This is where I belong and I’m so happy to be here for the next two and a half years.”