An ode to Liam Palmer - and his first-time Sheffield Wednesday fightback

Not that you'd have known it, by all accounts. Where other players of Palmer's experience might have taken umbrage at his standing in the early days of Danny Röhl's thinking, reports from the training ground and from the manager himself suggest the Owls vice-captain only trained harder and showed even more of the professionalism that has earned him 462 senior appearances and counting in a career as honest as they come.

A Scotland international steadily climbing the ladder of all-time Sheffield Wednesday appearance makers and above some of the greatest names in the club's storied history, he was coming off a campaign that saw him handed just about every end of season gong going, in which his image was pressed into Owls immortality for his starring role in the madness of May. A battling 52-game season in which he took injections to get him through the pain of a groin issue cost him - he underwent surgery to correct the damage in the summer.

Röhl's first two games came with Palmer unused on the bench as he shuffled through his squad for answers. The next two saw him spend Saturdays with the family as he was left out of the squad altogether. It wasn't until the seventh outing under the new boss that the 32-year-old stepped onto the pitch to take part in the Röhl revolution, as a second half substitute in a last-gasp 1-1 draw with champions elect Leicester City that kicked off their survival bid resurrection. He's played every game since.

The fact is that it was a position Palmer had never found himself in before. He's had time on the fringes of squads, but as a youngster making his way at the club he was born into. As a senior player, with the bruises and the scars and the standing to show for it? He'd had five seasons of practically uninterrupted seniority for which he'd worked hard. It happens in football, opinions change careers. And all of a sudden, Palmer's seemingly smooth road to an Owls career of 500 or more appearances was under threat.

Injuries may have helped get his foot back in the door; to those initially preferred wide right and more recently in midfield, but in recent weeks the man they so endearingly refer to as The Worksop Cafu has become a regular once more, starting seven of Wednesday's last eight matches. As has become something of a trademark, he has played in a number of positions and has done so with little fuss.

Called in to firefight an availability crisis in midfield in Monday evening's win over Hull City, the eight-cap Scotland international completed more tackles (five) than anyone else on the field and completed 55 of his 60 passes at an accuracy of 92 per cent. He jumped from position to position on the night, providing Röhl the flexibility to move players around his system safe in the knowledge the 32-year-old would do his bit.

After injury to Will Vaulks and suspension to George Byers at Preston a few days earlier, the German was left mulling his midfield options against a Hull side that had run all over Xisco's Wednesday just a few weeks earlier. Röhl fired up the laptop and sought out footage of the Owls' play-off successes against Peterborough United and Barnsley. Having previously seen Palmer as an option at full-back only, the decision was made and Palmer would start as a number six.

"He has been fantastic," Röhl told The Star in the moments after the Tigers mauling. "He did well and it's fantastic to have this sort of player on the pitch. Against Preston also he played as a centre-back, on the right side, as a number six. To have players that can do this sort of thing is great because as a manager you have the capability to switch the shape.

"Honestly, I am so happy with his improvement in the last weeks. I know life was not easy for him in the early weeks because he was out when I arrived. But his character was fantastic. He is the guy that loves this club in such a massive way and this is fantastic."

That 'massive love' for the club he has made 416 senior appearances for has never been in doubt. What follows for Palmer in the longer term is unknown, as it seems to be for every player in the Wednesday squad. Without delving into the realms of speculation, his contract is up in the summer and there's a feeling that the look and feel of the club will be very different after two, three or more Danny Röhl transfer windows - should they arrive.

They could do far worse than keep someone of Palmer's ilk around. In the last few weeks he has shown himself to be a fighter, durable through the whirlwind of a festive fixture schedule and able to offer a competent hand to a number of roles important to the way they go about things. His positive impact on the dressing room goes unargued.

2023 brought Palmer soaring highs, surgery and a stint on the sidelines. 2024 started with a stellar performance and a settling back in the side. It'll be fascinating to see what the year has to offer.