Crawley Town sign former Chelsea and Fulham academy defender after Swindon Town release

The 26-year-old captained the Robins to a Sky Bet League Two play-off campaign last season and made 41 appearances in all competitions. The defender racked up over 100 appearances for the fellow league two outfit, scoring two goals in the process.

Conroy began his career in the capital as a product of the Fulham and Chelsea Youth Academy’s.

Joining at the age of 12, Conroy made over 100 appearances for the Blues across different age categories. During his time at Stamford Bridge, the defender featured in Uefa Youth League campaigns and won the U21 Premier League in the 2013/14 season.

Before joining the Robins, Dion spent the first half of the 2016/17 season on loan at Aldershot, where he made 15 appearances. The defender’s loan was cut short in January so he could join Swindon on a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee. After recording an impressive 123 appearances for the Wiltshire club, Conroy was released at the end of the 2021/22 season.

Speaking on Conroy’s move to the Reds, manager Kevin Betsy said: “We are over the moon with the signing of Dion Conroy. He is a very experienced defender in this division. He guided Swindon to a play-off campaign as captain last season, so his leadership qualities are clear to see. He is a fantastic person with a brilliant knowledge of the game. We had to see off numerous teams from this division and higher so it is a real cop for us. This shows the level of players that we can attract to this football club. I’d like to thank the owners for their continued backing, which has allowed us to sign players of Dion’s quality.”

Commenting on his move to Crawley, Conroy said: “I am super happy to get the deal over the line. This has been brewing for the last couple of weeks, so it feels great to finally get it done. I can’t wait to meet the lads tomorrow and get started with training. The manager is super ambitious with all of the changes going on, and it feels like a great place to be. I think the club is only heading in one direction.”