Palmers FC
Full namePalmers Football Club
Founded2013
GroundPalmer's College, Grays, England
ChairmanMatt Smith
ManagerLee Thompson (Firsts)
Kevin Jacobson (Reserves)
LeagueThurrock Association Sunday League
2017–18TASL Div 1, 2nd (Firsts)
TASL Div 4, 2nd (Reserves)
WebsiteClub website

Palmers Football Club are an amateur football club, based in Grays, Essex. They currently compete in Division One of the Thurrock Association Sunday League.

The entrance to Palmer's College, the road has been dubbed Palmers Path

History

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The team were founded in 2013, by Matt Smith, Nick Horne, Lee Thompson, Wayne Sampson, Liam Sweetland and Lee Warren as a homage to a Little Thurrock Dynamos youth team they were all once part of.

2013-14 season

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The newly founded team entered the TASL Division Four, finishing the season 3rd out of a 12 team league, behind East Tilbury & Linford and Thames Gateway. The team didn't draw a single league game all season, and founding member Nick Horne won the golden boot with 29 goals.

2014-15 season

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A slightly changed Palmers team entered Division Three, having lost a core of players to Gateway. Nick Horne took over as manager from Matt Smith, and this time, Palmers went one better and finished 2nd of a 12 team league, only ahead of ETL on goal difference, and behind Stanford Town who only lost one game all season. Horne was once again top goal scorer, with 17.

2015-16 season

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Palmers were by now gaining some traction in internet popularity, and the team lived up to expectations, winning Division Two in dramatic circumstances, pipping Gateway on goal difference and Scruttons by just one point. The title race came down to the last game of the season, with captain Jamie Goodwins scoring the all-important goal to win the league. This season went on to be double-winning season for Palmers, as in October 2016, well into the next season, they played in a delayed league cup final vs Thames Gateway, winning 2-1 thanks to a brace from Connor White. Horne again finished as top scorer, with 27.

2016-17 season

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The 16-17 season saw Palmers enter Division One for the first time, and notably signing two goalkeepers in Jack Carter and Frank Roe after the departure of long-serving keeper Shaun Elliott. By league position this proved to be Palmers' worst season to date, finishing 4th, however defensively it was Palmers' best ever season, conceding just 23 goals in 20 games. Horne again won the golden boot, with 14 league goals.

2017-18 season

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A much changed Palmers set-up saw both a first team and a reserve team enter the TASL, the firsts remained in Division One whilst the reserves entered at the bottom of the system, Division Four.

The firsts, under the management of first Nick Horne, then Luke Grayson and ending the season under the guidance of Lee Thompson came 2nd of a 9 team league, six points off of champions Thames Gateway. The team also came as runners cup in the league cup, losing in the final on penalties to Thames Gateway, and as runners cup in the Essex County cup, losing 4-1 to The Marquis. Forward Lewis Francis won the golden boot in his debut season for the club with 19 goals.

The reserve team almost mimicked the firsts, coming 2nd in a 10 team league, losing out to Wochenduna by 6 points. Perry Aldridge came as top scorer, with 17.

2018-19 season

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First team squad

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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   ENG Jack Carter
2 DF   ENG Rich Hunt
3 DF   ENG Tony Connor
4 MF   ENG Tom Gray
5 DF   ENG Dan Smith
6 DF   ENG Lee Thompson (Player-manager)
7 MF   ENG Aaron Knowles
8 DF   ENG Elliott Gresham (Captain)
9 FW   ENG Connor White
10 FW   ENG Nick Horne
14 MF   ENG Lee Henry
15 DF   ENG Nick Hope
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 MF   ENG Luke Grayson
21 DF   ENG Shane Carrett
22 DF   ENG Lee Atkinson (Vice-Captain)
24 MF   ENG Josh Knowles
27 MF   ENG Martin "German" Llewellyn
32 FW   ENG Billy Texeira
57 FW   ENG Asa Lawrence
87 MF   ENG Charlie Vanner
91 GK   ENG Garron Price
   Callum Bloss
   Bradley Fox

Reserves team squad

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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   ENG Shaun Elliott
3 DF   ENG Wayne Sampson
4 DF   ENG Colin Pepperell
5 DF   ENG Graham Hazlewood
6 DF   ENG Ainsley Wood (Vice-Captain)
7 MF   ENG Lee "Bill" Martin
8 FW   ENG Lee Warren
9 FW   ENG Perry Aldridge
10 MF   ENG Cemal Izzet
11 MF   ENG Hasan Izzet
12 FW   ENG Jason Toogood
13 GK   ENG Frank Roe
14 MF   ENG Sam Henry
No. Pos. Nation Player
15 MF   ENG Liam Sweetland
16 MF   ENG Kevin Jacobson (Player-manager)
18 DF   ENG Nick Godden
19 DF   ENG Jordan Shea
20 FW   ENG Lee Greaves (Captain)
28 DF   SCO James "Scottish" Docherty
44 FW   ENG Kyle Shovlar
67 MF   ENG Kris Newby
80 FW   ENG Callum Palmer
88 FW   ENG Mike Amao
MF   SCO Kieran Devlin
DF   ENG Carlos "Pud" Spencer

Retired numbers

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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
2 DF   ENG Matt Smith