PETER TAYLOR
Posted on: Fri 30 May 2008
By Matt Cecil
Peter Taylor was appointed manager of Wycombe Wanderers on 29th May 2008 after a career in football spanning almost forty years, in which time he has won four promotions as a manager and been involved with the international set-up in both playing and coaching capacities.
His playing career began at his hometown club Southend United before Crystal Palace swooped with a six-figure sum to take the 20-year-old midfielder to Selhurst Park, where he became the first player in fifteen years to be capped by his country whilst playing for a third division club.
And what a first cap it turned out to be, scoring a second-half winner against Wales for Don Revie's England side in 1976. Later that year he moved for £200,000 to Tottenham Hotspur, where he went on to make 123 appearances before dropping down the leagues to play for Leyton Orient, Oldham and Exeter.
However, a broken leg at the age of 30 brought an end to Taylor's professional playing career, and he took the helm at non-league Dartford, winning the Southern Cup twice. He soon moved into the insurance industry but his heart remained in football, and it wasn't long before he took the assistant manager's role at Watford, working under former Tottenham team-mate Steve Perryman.
Then came his break in Football League management with an appointment at the club where his career first blossomed - Southend United. Taylor spent eighteen months at the Roots Hall club, guiding them to two mid-table finishes before returning to the non-league scene with Dover Athletic.
But after a year in charge of the Kent club, Taylor's career was to take a sudden upturn in fortune with an offer from former Spurs team-mate Glenn Hoddle to take up the managerial role of the England Under-21 team. Hoddle had recently taken over from Terry Venables as coach of the senior squad, and Taylor was given the opportunity to hone the talents of the country's top youngsters.
It was a role that Taylor relished, and a return of just one defeat in his three years in charge certainly enhanced his credentials as an excellent young coach. Indeed, he commanded the utmost respect from his players, and the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard offered their support to Taylor when his name was mentioned as a potential successor to England head coach Sven Goran Eriksson in 2006.
However, his tenure with the Under-21s was cut short by Howard Wilkinson, who stepped into the role in 1999, and it was back to club football with Gillingham for the media-friendly Taylor. In just his first season in charge of the Gills, he led the Priestfield club to promotion with a 3-2 win over Wigan in the play-off final, and this success alerted the attentions of Leicester City who gave the former international his first taste of life in the Premiership following the departure of Martin O'Neill in 2000.
A sensational start to the season saw the Foxes go eight games unbeaten and this form clearly caught the eye of the Football Association, who asked Taylor to step in as caretaker manager for the national side for the friendly with Italy in November 2000. Kevin Keegan had recently departed and Taylor reshuffled the squad, selecting no players over the age of 30, and handed the captain's armband to David Beckham for the first time in the midfielder's career.
It proved to be an astute decision by Taylor, with Beckham going on to make another sixty appearances as captain, but as Sven Goran Eriksson stepped in to the manager's position, Taylor was able to turn his attentions back to Filbert Street.
Wins over Liverpool and Chelsea helped the club sustain a top-four place for the first six months, but it all went downhill with the visit of Wycombe Wanderers in the FA Cup Quarter-Final. The rest, as they say, is history, and every Blues fan will be able to recall countless memories of that fantastic 2-1 win at Filbert Street. For Taylor, however, the effects of the shock defeat were huge, as three key players - Robbie Savage, Muzzy Izzet and Matt Elliott - succumbed to long-term injuries, and a drastic loss of form saw the Foxes end the season in 13th.
The following season started just as poorly, and Taylor was given little time to turn it around before being dismissed by chairman John Elsom. Nevertheless, he was back in management two weeks later with League One side Brighton and Hove Albion, where he led the Seagulls to automatic promotion at the first time of asking.
Taylor left the Withdean Stadium at the end of the 2001/02 campaign and took the reins at Hull City in November of the following season, guiding them to a mid-table finish before two sensational promotion seasons saw the Tigers leap from League Two to the second tier of English football.
In his second season in charge, he was offered the opportunity to return to his post as England Under-21 manager, and he duly obliged, working for both club and country. After keeping Hull safe from relegation, Taylor was appointed manager of one of his former clubs, Crystal Palace, in June 2006, but left his role with the national team in January 2007 due to Steve McLaren's preference for a full-time Under-21 coach.
Unfortunately, Taylor's stint with the Eagles did not follow the pattern of success that he'd enjoyed with Brighton and Hull, and he parted company with the club in October 2007. As part of his severance package, he was unable to manage a team in the Football League for the remainder of the season and so he took the helm at Stevenage Borough, where chairman Phil Wallace described him as "a Championship appointment."
However, previous boss Mark Stimson had poached Borough's best players to his new club, Gillingham, and Taylor was forced to reshuffle large parts of the squad in the January transfer window. The new players took their time to settle and after falling short of reaching the Blue Square Premier play-offs, Taylor left the club in the summer with a glowing endorsement from Wallace:
"From the first week Peter was fire fighting and that continued right through the January transfer window and into February," he said. "No side can seriously expect to compete for promotion under those circumstances, although we remained optimistic and had a good go at it.
"I've thoroughly enjoyed working with Peter - he's straightforward, honest and, like anyone who has reached the top of their profession, works very, very hard. We created a relationship built on mutual respect and I wish him well wherever he goes."
Peter told a press conference on the day of his appointment at Wycombe that he was always keen to return to management quickly after leaving Stevenage, but never thought such a good opportunity would arise so soon after his departure from Broadhall Way. The club were instantly impressed with his record and just nine days after the exit of previous boss Paul Lambert, Peter Taylor was installed as the new manager at Adams Park.
Peter Taylor was appointed manager of Wycombe Wanderers on 29th May 2008 after a career in football spanning almost forty years, in which time he has won four promotions as a manager and been involved with the international set-up in both playing and coaching capacities.
His playing career began at his hometown club Southend United before Crystal Palace swooped with a six-figure sum to take the 20-year-old midfielder to Selhurst Park, where he became the first player in fifteen years to be capped by his country whilst playing for a third division club.
And what a first cap it turned out to be, scoring a second-half winner against Wales for Don Revie's England side in 1976. Later that year he moved for £200,000 to Tottenham Hotspur, where he went on to make 123 appearances before dropping down the leagues to play for Leyton Orient, Oldham and Exeter.
However, a broken leg at the age of 30 brought an end to Taylor's professional playing career, and he took the helm at non-league Dartford, winning the Southern Cup twice. He soon moved into the insurance industry but his heart remained in football, and it wasn't long before he took the assistant manager's role at Watford, working under former Tottenham team-mate Steve Perryman.
Then came his break in Football League management with an appointment at the club where his career first blossomed - Southend United. Taylor spent eighteen months at the Roots Hall club, guiding them to two mid-table finishes before returning to the non-league scene with Dover Athletic.
But after a year in charge of the Kent club, Taylor's career was to take a sudden upturn in fortune with an offer from former Spurs team-mate Glenn Hoddle to take up the managerial role of the England Under-21 team. Hoddle had recently taken over from Terry Venables as coach of the senior squad, and Taylor was given the opportunity to hone the talents of the country's top youngsters.
It was a role that Taylor relished, and a return of just one defeat in his three years in charge certainly enhanced his credentials as an excellent young coach. Indeed, he commanded the utmost respect from his players, and the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard offered their support to Taylor when his name was mentioned as a potential successor to England head coach Sven Goran Eriksson in 2006.
However, his tenure with the Under-21s was cut short by Howard Wilkinson, who stepped into the role in 1999, and it was back to club football with Gillingham for the media-friendly Taylor. In just his first season in charge of the Gills, he led the Priestfield club to promotion with a 3-2 win over Wigan in the play-off final, and this success alerted the attentions of Leicester City who gave the former international his first taste of life in the Premiership following the departure of Martin O'Neill in 2000.
A sensational start to the season saw the Foxes go eight games unbeaten and this form clearly caught the eye of the Football Association, who asked Taylor to step in as caretaker manager for the national side for the friendly with Italy in November 2000. Kevin Keegan had recently departed and Taylor reshuffled the squad, selecting no players over the age of 30, and handed the captain's armband to David Beckham for the first time in the midfielder's career.
It proved to be an astute decision by Taylor, with Beckham going on to make another sixty appearances as captain, but as Sven Goran Eriksson stepped in to the manager's position, Taylor was able to turn his attentions back to Filbert Street.
Wins over Liverpool and Chelsea helped the club sustain a top-four place for the first six months, but it all went downhill with the visit of Wycombe Wanderers in the FA Cup Quarter-Final. The rest, as they say, is history, and every Blues fan will be able to recall countless memories of that fantastic 2-1 win at Filbert Street. For Taylor, however, the effects of the shock defeat were huge, as three key players - Robbie Savage, Muzzy Izzet and Matt Elliott - succumbed to long-term injuries, and a drastic loss of form saw the Foxes end the season in 13th.
The following season started just as poorly, and Taylor was given little time to turn it around before being dismissed by chairman John Elsom. Nevertheless, he was back in management two weeks later with League One side Brighton and Hove Albion, where he led the Seagulls to automatic promotion at the first time of asking.
Taylor left the Withdean Stadium at the end of the 2001/02 campaign and took the reins at Hull City in November of the following season, guiding them to a mid-table finish before two sensational promotion seasons saw the Tigers leap from League Two to the second tier of English football.
In his second season in charge, he was offered the opportunity to return to his post as England Under-21 manager, and he duly obliged, working for both club and country. After keeping Hull safe from relegation, Taylor was appointed manager of one of his former clubs, Crystal Palace, in June 2006, but left his role with the national team in January 2007 due to Steve McLaren's preference for a full-time Under-21 coach.
Unfortunately, Taylor's stint with the Eagles did not follow the pattern of success that he'd enjoyed with Brighton and Hull, and he parted company with the club in October 2007. As part of his severance package, he was unable to manage a team in the Football League for the remainder of the season and so he took the helm at Stevenage Borough, where chairman Phil Wallace described him as "a Championship appointment."
However, previous boss Mark Stimson had poached Borough's best players to his new club, Gillingham, and Taylor was forced to reshuffle large parts of the squad in the January transfer window. The new players took their time to settle and after falling short of reaching the Blue Square Premier play-offs, Taylor left the club in the summer with a glowing endorsement from Wallace:
"From the first week Peter was fire fighting and that continued right through the January transfer window and into February," he said. "No side can seriously expect to compete for promotion under those circumstances, although we remained optimistic and had a good go at it.
"I've thoroughly enjoyed working with Peter - he's straightforward, honest and, like anyone who has reached the top of their profession, works very, very hard. We created a relationship built on mutual respect and I wish him well wherever he goes."
Peter told a press conference on the day of his appointment at Wycombe that he was always keen to return to management quickly after leaving Stevenage, but never thought such a good opportunity would arise so soon after his departure from Broadhall Way. The club were instantly impressed with his record and just nine days after the exit of previous boss Paul Lambert, Peter Taylor was installed as the new manager at Adams Park.
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