Thanks to Dave Rowntree for many of the player images after 1984.
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MATT MACEY
Full Name: Matthew Ryan Macey
Born: 09 September 1994
Came from: Arsenal Went to: Arsenal
First game: 04 August 2018 Last game: 04 May 2019
Appearances: 38 (37/1) Goals: 0
The imposing 6ft 6in goalkeeper from Arsenal joined Argyle at the end of July 2018 when Wolves' loanee Harry Burgoyne broke an ankle in training at Argyle's Dutch training camp. Derek Adams' preference for three goalkeepers meant that he signed Macey on a season-long loan to compete with Kyle Letheren and Mike Cooper for the number one spot.
Macey, born in Bath and possibly exhibiting premonition skills, began his youth football with Avon Arsenal Comets. After he was turned down by Bristol Rovers' Centre of Excellence, he travelled to Cardiff City to train and then went on to represent the youth teams of Bath City and Yate Town before Bristol Rovers finally took him on in 2009. In 2011 he signed as a full-time scholar, and was offered a professional contract at the end of the second year of his scholarship in the summer of 2013.
However, in October 2013 he traded Avon Arsenal Comets for the real Arsenal after a trial at the Emirates, the Gunners beating off competition from Everton and a number of Championship clubs. Due to his age, Rovers were reportedly paid £100,000 in compensation.
In January 2015 Macey signed for League Two Accrington Stanley on a one-month loan, where he made his Football League debut. Two years later he joined Luton Town, also in League Two, on loan until the end of 2016–17 season but was recalled by Arsenal in the April to provide goalkeeping cover after injuries to Petr Čech and David Ospina. In total he had made 13 appearances for the Hatters, including a 1-1 draw with Argyle at Kenilworth Road in February 2017 when he was beaten by Craig Tanner’s equaliser.
He went on to make his Arsenal first team debut in October 2017 against Norwich City in the Football League Cup fourth round, which was quickly followed by his European debut in a 0-0 Europa League home draw with Red Star Belgrade in November 2017 in front of 58,285. The highlight of the game was a stunning one-handed save that used every inch of his height to tip Filip Stojkovic’s looping header onto the bar in the first half. Arsene Wenger said "He's huge. He's quick. You don't often find combinations of that size and that speed. He's very agile, as well, for a guy who’s tall like that.”
Macey made his debut for the Pilgrims on the opening day of the 2018-19 campaign and held his place for most of the season, apart from a spell on the bench after recovering from a Boxing Day injury and two more games on the bench in late April. On his return to the Emirates he continued to be Arsenal's third choice keeper, but picked up an FA Cup Winners' medal as a non-playing substitute in the 2019-20 Final, as Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 at Wembley.
In January 2021 Macey left Arsenal to join Scottish club Hibernian, initially until the end of the campaign but stayed for two seasons, making 52 appearances.
For the 2022–23 season he signed for former loan club Luton Town, but made only one further appearance in a cup match before being loaned to Portsmouth, where he played 21 times in League One. In September 2023, at the end of the summer transfer window, Macey left Luton after the mutually-agreed termination of his contract.
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APPEARANCE DETAILS [reselect competitions]
The details below reflect appearances in all first-team competitions.
I'm very grateful to many who have helped write GoS-DB's player pen-pictures, and to Dave Rowntree, the PAFC Media Team and Colin Parsons for their help with photos. Thanks also to staff at the National Football Museum, the Scottish Football Museum and ScotlandsPeople for their valuable assistance.
The following publications have been particularly valuable in the research of pen-pictures: Plymouth Argyle, A Complete Record 1903-1989 (Brian Knight, ISBN 0-907969-40-2); Plymouth Argyle, 101 Golden Greats (Andy Riddle, ISBN 1-874287-47-3); Football League Players' Records 1888-1939 (Michael Joyce, ISBN 1-899468-67-6); Football League Players' Records 1946-1988 (Barry Hugman, ISBN 1-85443-020-3) and Plymouth Argyle Football Club Handbooks.
Greens on Screen is run as a service to fellow supporters, in all good faith, without commercial or private gain. I have no wish to abuse copyright regulations and apologise unreservedly if this occurs. If you own any of the material used on this site, and object to its inclusion, please get in touch using the 'Contact Us' button at the top of each page.