Michael McElhatton spent 4 years at Rushden and Diamonds after being signed by Brian Talbot in 1998 on a free transfer. The dynamic midfielder had previously been at Scarborough, making 59 appearances, enough to convince Talbot to snap him up.

Despite being a midfielder, McElhatton had a phenomenal eye for goal, scoring 22 goals for Rushden and Diamonds, placing him at number 12 in the all time leading scorers list for the club. He had an incredible amount of energy and covered more ground than most players during the course of a game. This led to him being named players player of the season in 1999.

Unfortunately, McElhatton sustained a serious knee injury after a collision with Yeovil player Warren Patmore. After the injury, McElhatton was limited to few appearances for Diamonds, and eventually was forced to prematurely retire in 2002 at the age of 27.