Accrington Stanley
He was spotted by Accrington Stanley manager, John Coleman, whilst playing for Great Harwood against St Helens Town in February 2002 and a week later he was invited to a meeting with Coleman and the Chairman at a hotel in Rishton. [3] He signed a contract with the Northern Premier League Premier Division side which was "enough to put me through university. [3] Accrington won a treble of cups in the remainder of the 2001–02 season, firstly winning the Northern Premier League Challenge Cup with Procter scoring in the penalty shoot-out victory over Bradford (Park Avenue) after a two-legged affair ended in stalemate. [4] A fortnight later they then won the Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy final, beating Barrow 2–0 at Christie Park. [4] Finally, a week later, they won the Northern Premier League Challenge Shield, again on penalties, with Procter scoring in the shoot-out against Burton Albion. [4]
In the following 2002–03 season, Accrington romped to the title with a record-breaking 100 points and 97 goals scored, which earned promotion to the Football Conference. [3] Stanley also sealed a cup double when they retained the Northern Premier League Challenge Shield with a 2–0 win over Marine in the final game of the season. [3] He scored on his Conference debut on 10 August 2003, in a 2–1 away defeat to Aldershot Town which was broadcast on live TV. [5] Procter became an integral part of the side, making 39 league appearances as they finished in mid-table but had a record breaking-run in the FA Cup, beating Third Division side Huddersfield Town and Second Division side AFC Bournemouth to make it to the 3rd round. [6] He also won the club's Young Player of the Year award, with his form leading to international call-ups. [7]
He missed the start of the 2004–05 season due to a knee injury that he picked up during a pre-season friendly against Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2004. [8] He made a return to first team action in October, but the injury recurred, forcing him to miss big chunks of the season. [8] Accrington again picked up another trophy when they defeated Burscough 7–0 over a two-legged affair in the Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy final, with Procter winning the competition for the second time. [9]
He started the 2005–06 season as a regular in central midfield with Ian Craney, before suffering a serious cruciate knee ligament injury in August in training on the same knee that he had injured in the previous season. [10] He was forced to undergo an operation and was on the sidelines for just over seven months before making his return on 17 April 2006 in a 1–0 win over Scarborough. [11] By this stage, Accrington had already secured the league title and promotion to Football League Two for the first time in forty-four years after bankruptcy forced their expulsion from The Football League. [11]
The highlight of his career came on 28 April 2007 in a crucial League Two six-pointer with Macclesfield Town. Procter scored two goals in a 3–2 victory which secured Accrington Stanley's Football League status in their first season back after promotion from the Conference.
He studied at the University of Salford on a part-time basis for a degree in Physiotherapy, a programme he decided to follow after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury in 2005. [12]
Procter was in demand during the January transfer window from fellow League Two clubs Rochdale and Macclesfield Town, with the latter offering a five-figure fee which was rejected due to being "a long way short" of Accrington's valuation of the player. [13]
In May 2009, Accrington faced severe financial crisis due to an unpaid tax bill of £300,000 to HM Revenue and Customs with the club receiving a notice of winding up proceedings and a High Court hearing set for 10 June. [14] This caused the club to dramatically reduce their playing budget for the 2009–10 season. [15] Procter admitted that he was considering his future having been told he would have to take a pay cut on the two-year deal that he was offered and he was again receiving interest from League Two side Rochdale. [15]
In July 2011, he signed a new deal at Accrington having turned down better financial offers from League One sides Leyton Orient and Stevenage, being granted a testimonial as part of the deal. [16] Procter stated, "the wages would have been higher but there’s the cost of living in the south, because I’d have been paying London prices. With my personal situation it wasn’t right for me to relocate." [16]
Procter signed for Preston North End on 20 January 2012 and was announced captain on his arrival and he received a new two-year deal on 1 July 2012. He scored his first goal for the club against future club Bury in a Football League Trophy tie on 18 December 2012. [17] After 23 league appearances, 17 of them coming from the bench he decided to cancel his contract via mutual consent with the Lilywhites after 18 months of service.
After a week without a club Procter joined Bury on a free transfer penning a two-year deal with the Shakers. In his first season at Bury he made 28 appearances in all competitions. In his second season at Bury he was put on the transfer list along with Ashley Grimes after being seen as surplus to requirements. On 1 September 2014, he had his contract cancelled because Procter wanted to leave Bury.
Procter rejoined Accrington Stanley on 1 September. He competed against the likes of Luke Joyce and Josh Windass in 2014–15 season.
