West Brom's Alex Palmer lands joint-Championship award with Leeds United star
Albion's Alex Palmer has shared the Championship golden glove award with fellow play-off goalkeeper Illan Meslier of Leeds.
The duo kept 18 shutouts each between the sticks for the Baggies and Whites this term and were regulars as their sides booked a place in the play-offs.
Albion begin their two-legged affair with Southampton at The Hawthorns on Sunday, while Meslier and Leeds are in action against Norwich.
Albion academy graduate Palmer, 27, is one of just four players in the Championship – including three goalkeepers – to have played in every minute of the division this season.
Palmer almost departed the club for newly-promoted Luton last summer, but opted to stay at The Hawthorns to compete as Carlos Corberan's No.1 having shown much patience to reach the position at the club he joined as a youngster.
The keeper admitted the divisional award had been in his sights. He said: “I’m delighted to win the Golden Glove. It’s been a massive collective team effort.
“The way the gaffer sets us up has been key as well, because sometimes opposition teams have been limited to just a few chances against us.
“But there have been times where I’ve had to stay sharp and focused to make those crucial saves - whether that’s been in the last minute against Norwich, the penalty against Millwall or in the latter stages against QPR.
“The clean sheets award is a massive one for me and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been keeping an eye on them this season. Going into the final day, I was hoping we could keep one more and match the highest number.
“It’s a proud achievement and one you want to get, and it comes as a result of a team effort this season.”
The Baggies struggled for a clean sheet early on in the Championship campaign but a tweak in their shape reaped its rewards throughout September and October as rivals struggled to penetrate Corberan's side.
Clean sheets dried up towards the end of the season but Palmer and a resilient backline completed enough shutouts to deservedly land the award.
For Palmer it has been a first full season as Albion's first-choice goalkeeper having broken through towards the beginning of the previous campaign under Steve Bruce, just prior to the former boss' dismissal.
Kidderminster-born Palmer had loans at six different clubs as he had to bide his time following a first appearance on the Baggies' senior bench at the end of the 2014/15 Premier League campaign.
