Former Ballymena United, Larne, Crystal Palace, Port Vale and AFC Wimbledon defender looking to make 'real impact' after joining Motherwell

The 23-year-old, who left the Irish League for Premier League outfit Crystal Palace in 2022, has signed a two-year deal with the North Lanarkshire club and has the option of a further year.

Balmer starred for Palace’s U21 side that reached the Premier League International Cup final during his time at Selhurst Park and last season enjoyed two separate loan spells in the Football League with Port Vale and AFC Wimbledon.

The former Northern Ireland youth international now makes the move north to Fir Park as they look to improve on a ninth-placed Premiership finish in 2023/24 and manager Stuart Kettlewell admits they had to fight off interest from other clubs to secure Balmer’s signature.

“It’s great to get Kofi on board,” he told the club’s website. “There was a lot of interest from other clubs who were looking to sign him so it tells you we’ve got a good player on our hands.

“He has played lots of football for a boy his age but we still think with our coaching, we can get more out of Kofi and make him even better. I look forward to working with him during pre-season and seeing how he gets on.”

Balmer, who received his maiden senior Northern Ireland call-up in September 2022, is excited for the new challenge and wants to hit the ground running in Scotland.

“I’m so happy to be here,” he said. “I’ve heard some great things about the club and the fan base.

"I can’t wait to meet everyone and get stuck into work. I feel I can bring a lot to the team and want to make a real impact in my time here.”