Former Rangers talent Cammy Palmer produced a brilliant Man of the Match display for Linfield on Saturday afternoon as they hammered Dungannon Swifts 5-2 in the Irish Cup.
Palmer captained Rangers at Reserves level before heading out on loan to Partick Thistle, Orange County SC and Clyde.
He made one Rangers first-team appearance in a friendly against HJK Helsinki in 2019 but was unable to break into Steven Gerrard’s plans and cut his stint at Clyde short in January in order to sign for Linfield on an 18-month contract.
It took the 20-year-old a few weeks to get up to speed at the Belfast club but he’s been a near ever-present since making his first start in early March.
The Blues are on the verge of securing their 55th Northern Irish league title but their attention turned to the Irish Cup on Saturday afternoon, with fellow top-flight side Dungannon Swifts travelling to Windsor Park for a second-round tie.
Palmer started in midfield and was superb. He assisted the first goal of the afternoon, providing a ‘wonderful pass’ to release Navid Nasseri, who rounded the goalkeeper before putting the hosts in front.
Dungannon equalised almost instantly but the Blues reestablished their lead before the interval through Stephen Fallon.
Andy Waterworth scored a third before the hour mark and Palmer was then heavily involved in Linfield’s final two goals.
The former Ger burst into the opposition box in the 62nd minute and got off an effort that was diverted into the net by Waterworth and he surged forward again with just a minute of normal time remaining before applying a confident finish to a cross from the right.
Dungannon scored a second in injury time but unsurprisingly, Palmer was selected as the Man of the Match as a reward for a brilliant individual display.
After several stop-start loan spells, the Northern Ireland youth international looks settled and is thriving in Belfast.
In other news, Rangers U18s defeated a rival Premiership club in a five-goal thriller on Friday night.
