Jeffrey Neilson Taylor (20 September 1930 – 28 December 2010) was an English professional footballer who played in the Football League for Huddersfield Town, Fulham and Brentford as a forward. He went on to perform opera.[3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jeffrey Neilson Taylor[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 20 September 1930 | ||
| Place of birth | Huddersfield, England | ||
| Date of death | 28 December 2010 (aged 80)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Holmfirth, England | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1949–1951 | Huddersfield Town | 68 | (27) |
| 1951–1954 | Fulham | 33 | (14) |
| 1954–1957 | Brentford | 94 | (34) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Football career
editIn an eight-year career as a professional footballer, Taylor played in the First Division, Second Division and Third Division South of the Football League for Huddersfield Town, Fulham and Brentford respectively.[1] Taylor scored in double-figures in his first two seasons with Huddersfield Town.[4] He moved to Fulham in November 1951 and scored a hat-trick in one of his early appearances against Middlesbrough,[2][5] before his music studies began to take precedence and he dropped out of the first team picture.[6] He was Brentford's second-highest scorer in the 1956–57 season, his last in football.[1] Taylor finished his career having scored 84 goals in 204 games.[1] Looking back in 1997 on his premature retirement, Taylor said, "singing won the day. I had no long-term ambitions in football and I realised that it was impossible to marry the two".[6]
Opera career
editWhile still a footballer, Taylor was able to use his wages to pay for his studies in singing and piano at the Royal Academy of Music.[6] Taylor performed opera under the name "Neilson Taylor" and was a bass baritone. After retiring from football, he joined the Yorkshire Opera Company.[6] Taylor moved on in 1962 to understudy Michel Roux in Pelléas et Mélisande and Walter Alberti and John Shirley-Quirk in L'incoronazione di Poppea at Glyndebourne.[6] His time at Glyndebourne proved to be a breakthrough and he toured the world, spending time in Australia and a year at Mantua in Italy, which led to work at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden and in Rotterdam.[3] He appeared on the 1971 Unicorn recording A Peter Warlock Merry-Go-Down, subtitle "songs, catches and poems, sociable, amorous and bibulous", which was put together by Fred Tomlinson. It was reissued in 2024.[7]
Taylor failed fully to deliver on his promise as a performer, but found fulfilment when he was made Professor of Singing at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music in Glasgow and he remained in the role for 18 years.[3]
Personal life
editHis younger brother, Ken Taylor also played football for Huddersfield.[6] Ken was also a professional cricketer, playing three Tests for England and first-class cricket for Yorkshire.[6] Ken's son (Jeff's nephew) Nick Taylor also played cricket for Yorkshire. While still a footballer, Taylor studied for a degree in Geography at London University.[6] After retiring from teaching, Taylor retired to Yorkshire.[3]
Career statistics
edit| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Huddersfield Town | 1949–50[4] | First Division | 21 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 11 |
| 1950–51[4] | 34 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 37 | 13 | ||
| 1951–52[4] | 13 | 5 | ― | 13 | 5 | |||
| Total | 68 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 71 | 29 | ||
| Fulham | 1951–52[5] | First Division | 21 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 4 |
| Brentford | 1954–55[8] | Third Division South | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4 |
| 1955–56[8] | 43 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 45 | 16 | ||
| 1956–57[8] | 38 | 15 | 2 | 2 | 40 | 17 | ||
| Total | 94 | 34 | 4 | 3 | 98 | 37 | ||
| Career total | 203 | 73 | 7 | 5 | 210 | 78 | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c d Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. p. 158. ISBN 978-0955294914.
- ^ a b "Jeff Taylor". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
- ^ a b c d Chalke, Stephen. "Jeff Taylor: Footballer who went on to forge a career as a popular singer and inspirational teacher". The Independent. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Player Profile - Taylor, Jeff". Huddersfield Town AFC Archive. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ a b Jeff Taylor at WorldFootball.net
- ^ a b c d e f g h Brentford Matchday Magazine versus Grimsby Town. Quay Design of Poole. 30 August 1997. p. 22.
- ^ 'A Peter Warlock Merry-Go-Round', Convivium CR098, reviewed at MusicWeb International, 24 October 2024
- ^ a b c White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 383–384. ISBN 0951526200.
External links
edit- Ian Thomas, Owen Thomas, Alan Hodgson, John Ward (2007). 99 Years and Counting: Stats and Stories. Huddersfield Town A.F.C. ISBN 978-0955728105.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - The Independent obituary, 29 January 2011. [1]