Ollie Palmer

Ollie Palmer

Palmer playing for Mansfield Town in 2013
Personal information
Full name	Oliver James Palmer [1]
Date of birth	(1992-01-21) 21 January 1992 (age 32) [2]
Place of birth	Epsom, England
Height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) [3]
Position(s)	Striker
Team information
Current team	Wrexham
Number	9
Youth career
0000–2011	Woking
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2011	Woking	19	(2)
2010	→ St Albans City (loan)	3	(0)
2011	→ Boreham Wood (loan)	7	(1)
2011–2013	Havant & Waterlooville	69	(37)
2013–2015	Mansfield Town	54	(5)
2015	→ Grimsby Town (loan)	13	(6)
2015–2017	Leyton Orient	65	(12)
2017	→ Luton Town (loan)	17	(3)
2017–2018	Lincoln City	45	(8)
2018–2020	Crawley Town	68	(27)
2020–2022	AFC Wimbledon	41	(10)
2022–	Wrexham	105	(39)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:10, 27 April 2024 (UTC)

Oliver James Palmer (born 21 January 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for EFL League One club Wrexham.

Early life and education

Born in Epsom, Surrey, Palmer supported Wimbledon as a child, for whom his grandfather Tony Wright played in the 1950s. ^[4] He stopped supporting the club following their relocation to Milton Keynes, stating "My team was Wimbledon as a kid – but I wasn't going to support Milton Keynes Dons". ^[4] He attended Therfield School from 2003 to 2008.^{[ citation needed ]}

His father Andy served as a Metropolitan Police protection officer for the Royal Family, and was the Prince of Wales’ Personal Protection Officer for 10 years. ^[5]

Football career

Woking

Palmer began his career at the college scheme of Woking, ^[6] although by his own admission, he never attended the actual college, working as a part-time roofer instead. ^[6] Palmer was selected for the England Colleges National Team in 2010, ^[7] and later signed a first-team contract in August of that year.^{[ citation needed ]} Palmer was subsequently loaned out to fellow Conference South club St Albans City in November 2010 and scored one goal from five appearances. ^[8] He finished 2010–11 with two goals from 20 appearances for Woking and signed a new one-year contract with the club after the end of the season. ^{[3] [9]}

Havant & Waterlooville

After he was recalled from a loan spell at Boreham Wood, Palmer signed for fellow Conference South club Havant & Waterlooville permanently in September 2011. ^[10] After seven goals from five appearances, League One club Charlton Athletic were reportedly interested in signing him. ^[11] Palmer finished 2012–13 as Conference South joint top scorer with 25 goals from 42 appearances and was also named Player of the Year. ^[12]

Mansfield Town

Palmer signed for newly promoted League Two club Mansfield Town on 2 August 2013 on a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee. ^[13] He debuted a day later as a 61st-minute substitute in a 2–0 defeat away to Scunthorpe United and scored his first goal in a 1–0 win away to Wycombe Wanderers on 17 August. ^[14]

On 5 January 2015, Palmer joined Conference Premier club Grimsby Town on an initial one-month loan. ^[15] He scored on his debut at home to league-leaders Barnet on 17 January, scoring Grimsby's first goal in a 3–1 victory. ^[3] Palmer's loan at Grimsby was extended on 30 January until the end of the season. ^{[16] [17]} He missed a month due to a hamstring injury, ^[18] scoring on his return with the opener away to former club Woking on 7 March, which finished as a 2–1 victory. ^[19] Palmer scored a brace in the play-off semi-final second leg against Eastleigh, the first coming in the 35th minute and the second coming in the 71st minute, which made the score 3–0, meaning Grimsby won the tie 5–1 on aggregate. ^[20] He started in the 2015 Conference Premier play-off final at Wembley Stadium on 17 May 2015, which finished as a 1–1 draw after extra time, but Grimsby lost the subsequent penalty shoot-out 5–3 to Bristol Rovers. ^[21]

Leyton Orient

On 6 July 2015, Palmer signed for League Two club Leyton Orient for an undisclosed fee on a two-year contract. ^[22] He debuted on the opening day of 2015–16 in a 2–0 win at home to Barnet, having entered the match as an 89th-minute substitute and scored his first goal after being introduced as a 76th-minute substitute in a 3–0 win at home to Stevenage on 18 August. ^[23]

On 31 January 2017, Palmer joined League Two club Luton Town on loan until the end of 2016–17. ^[24] He debuted four days later in a 1–1 draw away to former loan club Grimsby Town, having entered the match as a 58th-minute substitute. ^[25] After coming on as a substitute in the 73rd minute, Palmer scored his first goal for Luton with the third goal in a 3–0 victory at home to Hartlepool United on 14 February. ^[26] Having entered Luton's 3–2 defeat away to Blackpool in the first leg of the play-off semi-final on 14 May as an 86th-minute substitute, ^[27] Palmer was an unused substitute in the second leg four days later, which resulted in a 3–3 draw and a 6–5 defeat on aggregate. ^[28] He completed the loan spell with 18 appearances and three goals. ^[25]

Lincoln City

On 26 June 2017, Palmer signed a two-year contract with newly promoted League Two club Lincoln City. ^[29] He scored his first goal for Lincoln in an EFL Trophy tie against Mansfield Town on 29 August. ^[30] Palmer came on as a 63rd-minute substitute as Lincoln beat Shrewsbury Town 1–0 at Wembley Stadium in the 2018 EFL Trophy Final on 8 April 2018, ^[31] having been named in the Team of the Tournament prior to the match. ^[32]

Crawley Town

Palmer signed for fellow League Two club Crawley Town on 27 June 2018 on a two-year contract for a nominal fee. ^[33] In February 2019, Palmer apologised after he and teammate Dominic Poleon posted a video online mocking Crawley's training facilities and teammates. ^[34] He left the club in the summer of 2020 following the expiry of his contract. ^[35]

AFC Wimbledon

Palmer joined League One club AFC Wimbledon on 7 August 2020. ^[36] He signed a two-year contract, with a third year automatically triggered if a certain number of appearances were met. ^[37] He scored his first goal for Wimbledon in a 2–1 defeat to Lincoln City on 2 January 2021. ^[38]

Wrexham

Palmer signed for Wrexham, then a National League club, on 24 January 2022 on a three-and-a-half-year contract for a club record fee of £300,000. ^[39]

Outside football

Palmer made his film debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024). ^[40]

Career statistics

As of match played 27 April 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Woking	2010–11 [3]	Conference South	19	2	0	0	—		1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	20	2
St Albans City (loan)	2010–11 [8]	Conference South	3	0	—		—		2 [lower-alpha 2]	1	5	1
Boreham Wood (loan)	2011–12 [3]	Conference South	7	1	—		—		—		7	1
Havant & Waterlooville	2011–12 [3]	Conference South	27	12	0	0	—		0	0	27	12
	2012–13 [3]	Conference South	42	25	0	0	—		2 [lower-alpha 2]	0	44	25
	Total		69	37	0	0	—		2	0	71	37
Mansfield Town	2013–14 [14]	League Two	38	4	3	1	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 3]	0	43	5
	2014–15 [41]	League Two	16	1	4	1	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 3]	0	21	2
	Total		54	5	7	2	1	0	2	0	64	7
Grimsby Town (loan)	2014–15 [3]	Conference Premier	13	6	—		—		5 [lower-alpha 4]	2	18	8
Leyton Orient	2015–16 [23]	League Two	45	7	3	2	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 3]	0	50	9
	2016–17 [25]	League Two	20	5	1	0	1	0	1 [lower-alpha 5]	0	23	5
	Total		65	12	4	2	2	0	2	0	73	14
Luton Town (loan)	2016–17 [25]	League Two	17	3	—		—		1 [lower-alpha 6]	0	18	3
Lincoln City	2017–18 [42]	League Two	45	8	1	0	1	0	10 [lower-alpha 7]	3	57	11
Crawley Town	2018–19 [43]	League Two	40	14	2	2	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 5]	0	43	16
	2019–20 [44]	League Two	28	13	1	1	4	0	0	0	33	14
	Total		68	27	3	3	4	0	1	0	76	30
AFC Wimbledon	2020–21 [45]	League One	23	5	2	0	0	0	2	0	27	5
	2021–22 [46]	League One	18	5	3	3	3	0	1	0	25	8
	Total		41	10	5	3	3	0	3	0	52	13
Wrexham	2021–22 [3]	National League	21	15	—		—		1 [lower-alpha 8]	0	22	15
	2022–23 [3]	National League	45	17	1	0	—		4 [lower-alpha 9]	1	50	18
	2023–24 [3]	League Two	39	7	3	1	2	0	2 [lower-alpha 5]	0	46	8
	Total		105	39	4	1	2	0	7	1	118	41
Career total			506	150	24	11	13	0	36	7	579	168

1. Appearance in Conference South play-offs
2. Appearances in FA Trophy
3. Appearance in Football League Trophy
4. Two appearances in FA Trophy, three appearances and two goals in Conference Premier play-offs
5. Appearance in EFL Trophy
6. Appearance in League Two play-offs
7. Eight appearances and three goals in EFL Trophy, two appearances in League Two play-offs
8. Appearance in the National League play-offs
9. Four appearances and one goal in the FA Trophy

Honours

Lincoln City

• EFL Trophy: 2017–18 ^[31]

Wrexham

• EFL League Two runner-up: 2023–24 ^[47]
• National League: 2022–23 ^[48]
• FA Trophy: runner-up: 2021–22 ^[49]

Individual

• Conference South Player of the Year: 2012–13 ^[12]
• Conference South Golden Boot: 2012–13 ^[12]
• EFL Trophy Team of the Tournament: 2017–18 ^[32]

References

1. "Notification of shirt numbers: AFC Wimbledon" (PDF). English Football League. p. 3. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
2. "Ollie Palmer". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
3. "O. Palmer: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
4. Cawley, Richard (14 August 2020). ""I wasn't going to support Milton Keynes!" – Dons new boy so excited by chance to play at Plough Lane". South London Press. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
5. Robertson, Gregor (28 January 2023). ""The King and I: How Ollie Palmer became talk of royalty and Hollywood"". The Times. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
6. Men in Blazers (16 January 2024). ""I was working as a roofer getting 4 hours of sleep" | Ollie Palmer Interview with Men in Blazers" – via YouTube.
7. "English Colleges National Team". Woking F.C. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
8. "Ollie Palmer appearances: Season 2010–11 appearances". St Albans City F.C. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
9. "Ollie Palmer signs new Woking contract". BBC Sport. 17 May 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
10. "Ollie Palmer joins Havant & Waterlooville". Woking F.C. 28 September 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
11. "Addicks track Havant striker". Sky Sports. 1 November 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
12. "Conference South Awards". Football Conference. 9 June 2013. Archived from the original on 18 December 2014.
13. "Mansfield Town: Ollie Palmer joins from Havant & Waterlooville". BBC Sport. 2 August 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
14. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
15. "Signing alert: Grimsby Town announce loan signing of striker Ollie Palmer". Grimsby Telegraph. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
16. "Done deal: Grimsby Town extend Ollie Palmer's loan deal until end of the season". Grimsby Telegraph. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
17. "Ollie Palmer: Grimsby Town keep Mansfield striker on loan". BBC Sport. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
18. "Grimsby Town's Ollie Palmer and staff 'frustrated by injury recovery time'". Grimsby Telegraph. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
19. "Woking 1–2 Grimsby". BBC Sport. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
20. "Grimsby Town 3–0 Eastleigh (5–1 agg)". BBC Sport. 3 May 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
21. Mitchell, Brendon (17 May 2015). "Bristol Rovers 1–1 Grimsby Town (5–3 on penalties)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
22. "Leyton Orient sign Mansfield striker on two-year deal". BBC Sport. 6 July 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
23. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
24. "Luton Town: Matt Macey, Ollie Palmer & Stuart Moore join League Two club". BBC Sport. 31 January 2017. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
25. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
26. "Luton Town 3–0 Hartlepool United". BBC Sport. 14 February 2017. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
27. Middleton, Nathan (14 May 2017). "Blackpool 3–2 Luton Town". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
28. Mitchell, Brendon (18 May 2017). "Luton Town 3–3 Blackpool (agg: 5–6)". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
29. "Lincoln City: Matt Green, Ollie Palmer & Josh Ginnelly join League Two club". BBC Sport. 26 June 2017. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
30. Johnson, Alan (29 August 2017). "Mansfield Town 1 Lincoln City 3: Imps make superb start to Checkatrade Trophy campaign". Lincolnshire Echo. Lincoln. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
31. Scott, Ged (8 April 2018). "Lincoln City 1–0 Shrewsbury Town". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
32. "Team of the Tournament". English Football League. 8 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
33. "Ollie Palmer: Crawley Town pay nominal fee for Lincoln City striker". BBC Sport. 27 June 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
34. Pole, Matt (19 February 2019). "Crawley Town players sorry for live Instagram video". Crawley Observer. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
35. Morton, Sam (6 August 2020). "Outgoing striker thanks Crawley Town for 'unforgettable memories'". Crawley Observer. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
36. "Ollie Palmer: AFC Wimbledon sign former Crawley Town striker". BBC Sport. 7 August 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
37. Brack, Edmund (28 January 2022). "'The hardest decision I have had to make in football' – Ollie Palmer opens up on his emotional AFC Wimbledon exit". South London News. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
38. Marsh, Daniel (2 January 2021). "AFC Wimbledon 1 Lincoln City 2 – Hopper strikes late as Dons suffer third defeat in a row". South London Press. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
39. "Ollie Palmer: Wrexham sign striker from AFC Wimbledon". BBC Sport. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
40. Minelle, Bethany (23 April 2024). "Deadpool 3: Ryan Reynolds teases cameo of Wrexham striker Ollie Palmer in new Marvel film". Sky News . Archived from the original on 30 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
41. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
42. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
43. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
44. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
45. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
46. "Games played by Ollie Palmer in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
47. https://www.wrexhamafc.co.uk/news/2024/april/end-of-season-gallery--relive-the-red-dragons-memorable-season/ ^{[ bare URL ]}
48. "Mullin the hero as Wrexham win to earn promotion". BBC Sport. 22 April 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
49. "Bromley beat Wrexham to win FA Trophy". BBC Sport. Retrieved 22 May 2022.

External links

• Profile at the Wrexham A.F.C. website