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TOMMY TAYLOR |
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Full
Name
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Thomas
Taylor
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Date
of Birth
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29th
Jan 1932
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Place
of Birth
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Barnsley
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Position
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Forward
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Height
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6ft
4
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United debut
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7/3/1953
vs Preston N.E (H)
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.....
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Taylor's
United Record 1953-1958
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Appearances |
Goals |
| League |
166 |
112 |
| FA
Cup |
9 |
5 |
| League
Cup |
n/a
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n/a
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| Europe |
14 |
11 |
| Other games |
2 |
3 |
| Total |
191 |
131 |
Taylor's
International Record
1953-1958
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19
Caps for England - 16 Goals
..
1957 1st Div League Championship
1956 1st Div League Championship
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Tommy
Taylor ran through brick walls to
score goals and woe betide any centre
half who got in the way. He could
out-jump the opposition to create
chances and steal the winner. Taylor
only played 19 times for England
but there would have been many more
had it not been for the tragedy
at Munich that robbed him of his
life at only 26. One of England's
all-time great goal-scorers, a look
at his games-to goals record shows
he averaged well over a goal every
two games.
His greatest ability was for aerial
combat, in which he was the best
in the land. Towering above other players Taylor could propel the
ball with his forehead like a bullet
and with supreme accuracy as well.
A physical giant of a player, he
had excellent ball control and movement
which made him and partner up front, Dennis Viollet, the Yorke and Cole
of the 1950s. Taylor was also a brave and
committed player who had buckets
of stamina and drive to keep going
for the whole 90 minutes.
Tommy began his football playing for a local coal mining team at the Colliery where he worked. At the age of 16, local scouts spotted his ability and gave him a chance with local side, Barnsley. After impressive displays up front
for The Tykes, Tommy was brought to
Old Trafford for what was a record
fee of £29,999 - Matt Busby
did not want him burdened with a
£30,000 noose and gave the
extra pound to a tea lady. Like
a Dwight Yorke or Eric Cantona,
United had got one hell of a bargain.
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Taylor
got off to a flier of a start and
became a firm favorite of the fans
and team-mates, scoring twice on his
debut. By the end of the 1952/53
season he had 7 goals in just 11
games. With Taylor, United and the
Busby Babes swept to two League
titles in 1956 and 57 in a manner that captured the hearts and imaginations of football fans across Britain. Taylor also scored
in the 1957 FA Cup final when United were denied
the "Double" because of a terrible
refereeing decision that left them with 10-men for most of the game. In his 19 full international appearances he scored an amazing 16 goals. Many saw him as England's direct replacement for Bolton legend Nat Lofthouse. When Inter
Milan made a whopping offer of £65,000
for Taylor in 1957, Busby refused
to part with the him, as money just
couldn't buy what Taylor was worth. When Taylor was killed at Munich in Feburary 1958 he was
only 26, at the peak of his career. Nowadays, whenever
the all-time greats are talked about,
the name Tommy Taylor does not often
appear, but in the history of Manchester
United, he was a great player. One
of the best forwards the club has
ever seen, his career will be remembered
in United history for a long time
to come.
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