Inside Wrexham’s ‘ridiculous’ season, from meeting King Charles to Will Ferrell randomly bowling into dressing room
OLLIE PALMER used to joke about being invited for a barbeque at Ryan Reynolds' house, now he's accepted an invite for one.
The Wrexham striker, who dropped down two tiers from AFC Wimbledon to join the National League side in January last year, still has to step back every now and then.
Whether it's meeting the King, seeing Hollywood royalty in the changing room or going to Las Vegas on Rob McElhenney's card, the whole experience has been one wild ride.
Palmer told SunSport: "You’ve just got to embrace it because it’s not normal. We’re very lucky.
"When I was at Wimbledon we always used to joke.
"It was my last week there and the cat was out of the bag and I'd chat to the lads and say: 'Lads, if I'm not having a barbeque with Ryan Reynolds in the summer and playing two touch with him then something has gone wrong!'
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"And lo and behold he's invited me for a barbeque when he's over here in a few weeks!"
Reynolds and McElhenney have transformed the Welsh club since taking over in February 2021.
From a club stuck in the National League they are now back in League Two after winning promotion in record-breaking fashion and, through their documentary 'Welcome to Wrexham', have gained international fame.
For a group of lower league players, the experience has been life-changing and utterly surreal.
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Following the promotion parade through the town earlier this month, where they were joined by the two owners on open top buses, the squad have since been sent on a trip to Vegas paid for by their bosses.
Palmer said: "I've been before but I've not been when someone like Rob is booking everything and organising it."
After the trip to Vegas and before their astonishing US pre-season tour, Palmer wants to spend some time taking stock of just how bizarre the past year has been.
He said: "I have to check myself because it’s not that normal, they’re both Hollywood stars but it is normal now.
"They’re making the documentary and so many things that have happened that if you wrote it for a movie it would sound far-fetched.
"Ben Foster’s save against Notts County in the 96th minute springs to mind. It was just ridiculous.
"And why is Ben Foster even playing for Wrexham? You just think: ‘What is going on here?’
"You just have to step back sometimes and that is what I’m trying to do now.
Palmer added: "There have been so many ridiculous moments that I can’t talk about but there are two that stand out.
"The King coming to the stadium to meet all the players and staff.
"The other one, we had a game on a Saturday afternoon and Will Ferrell just bowled into the changing room and started cracking jokes at 2.15pm.
"Luckily we’ve got very used to these sorts of things happening that it doesn’t become a distraction. If it happened at any other club out of the blue like that then it would be a distraction."
There will be more potential distractions this summer, with Palmer saying every player he speaks to wants to join the club - something the owners and manager Phil Parkinson must be wary of.
But should they get that right, the target for next season is clear.
Palmer said: "Without signing a single player we’ve got a squad that could get promoted out of League Two now.
"I don’t think you can avoid that really. When you strengthen that squad you can’t deny we should definitely be fighting for that next season.
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"The club is going to have to be careful with who they sign and why they are coming here.
"Every Tom, Dick and Harry I know wants to come and sign for Wrexham, but are they coming for the right reasons? That is the manager’s job and he’s been great at that."