Saturday 28th October 2023 is a day that we as Notts fans will probably want to forget but the events of that day will unfortunately live long in our memories.
It was a day when Wrexham visited Meadow Lane - a game that many considered the continuation of a rivalry which saw the two clubs battle it out for National League supremacy the previous season. Fifteen games in to a much anticipated League Two campaign saw both teams going well, Notts tucked nicely behind Stockport in second place on 30 points and Wrexham just behind on 27 points.
A crowd of over 16,000 witnessed a cagey first 45 minutes from both teams, a half that finished goalless, and a result that both sides might have been happy with at full time.
Unfortunately for the hosts, it was the second half that would become a catalyst for misfortune, one that would impact not just the result of this match, but the rest of the season.
Influential midfielder Matty Palmer, an ever present since signing ahead of the 2021/22 campaign, suffered a season-ending knee injury, one that would only draw parallels with the preceding monumental fall from grace for the Magpies.
You could be forgiven for thinking such comparisons are a little dramatic, after all, the loss of one player really shouldn’t have such an impact. However, it’s difficult to argue against the fact that Palmer’s injury impacted the eventual mid table finish in a way the loss of many other players would not, such was his contribution on the field.
From being released by Derby at 16 years old to becoming Team Captain of the World’s Oldest Professional Football Club, Palmer’s career has, in some ways, been quite unorthodox in its path and transition, but those of us who have been fortunate to watch him play week in, week out, will be the first to highlight the understated and effective qualities of a player who maybe deserved better.
Following his release from Derby, Palmer found a home in neighbouring Burton Albion. After a short spell in the U18’s it wasn’t long before opportunities in the Brewers first team came along, making his first senior appearance as a late substitute in an FA Cup first round replay at Altrincham in November 2012.
This was the beginning of a five-year spell with the Derbyshire outfit, one that saw Palmer make 159 first team appearances, 57 of which were in the Championship. However, after a spell on loan at Oldham Athletic and 8 games without featuring for then Albion Boss Nigel Clough, he found himself dropping back down to League One with a move the Paul Warne’s Rotherham United.
Shortly before the move, Clough had told local reporters that he had not had a positive response from Palmer during early discussions around a contract renewal, so a run of games without selection followed by the unsurprising move to the Millers.
There were some, however, who questioned the move as a step backwards. But it was clear Palmer, who was still only 22 at the time, was prepared to take the risk in the hope that under Warne he would be able to develop further as a player, something he obviously thought was not going to happen under Clough.
It was a decision that instantly paid off, with Rotherham gaining promotion back to the Championship at the first time of asking via the play offs and Palmer playing a key part in that success.
Unfortunately, the midfielder’s return to the second tier wouldn’t be a memorable one and, despite starting games early in the season, he found himself out of favour and a loan move in the summer to newly-relegated Bradford City saw Palmer back in the fourth tier of English football.
A move to Swindon Town was to follow which included a loan spell at Wigan Athletic and it was clear that a career that looked to be very much on the ascendency just a few years earlier had somehow become one that was both stuttering and frustrating.
It’s a testament to the player then that an opportunity to drop out of the Football League was seen as a career reboot, an opportunity that was taken with both hands and one that left many who had witnessed him playing comfortably in the Championship aghast if not bewildered.
Upon joining Notts County in the summer of 2021, Palmer didn’t take long in establishing himself as an ever-present in the heart of the Magpies midfield. It soon became clear that this was a player whose abilities deserved much better than the level he found himself. But again, you have to admire the professionalism and determination of the player to embrace the chance to rebuild a faltering career and play a part in the resurgence of a club that has had more than its own fair share of troubles over the years.
Fast forward and Palmer finds himself in familiar territory, plying his trade at a level which is the very least his abilities deserve, and contributing to his newly-promoted club’s encouraging start to life back in the Football League.
The season-ending injury suffered last October and the subsequent Captaincy awarded to him on his return to pre-season training epitomises a career that has ebbed as much as flowed, one that boasts four promotions among its achievements in a CV intertwined with setbacks and disappointment.
At 29 Palmer will know he has time to go again. As a captain he may not be the most vocal, but he will no doubt lead by example through his determination and consistency. He should draw strength from the negatives turned positive in a career where difficult decisions had to be made, and there should be hope that he can re-establish his career back at the level his talents and determination undoubtedly demand.