Tommy Taylor facts for kids
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Taylor in 1957
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Taylor | ||
| Date of birth | 29 January 1932 | ||
| Place of birth | Smithies, West Riding of Yorkshire, England | ||
| Date of death | 6 February 1958 (aged 26) | ||
| Place of death | Munich, Bavaria, West Germany | ||
| Height | 1.83 m | ||
| Playing position | Centre-forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Smithies United | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1949–1953 | Barnsley | 44 | (26) |
| 1953–1958 | Manchester United | 166 | (112) |
| Total | 210 | (138) | |
| National team | |||
| 1953–1957 | England | 19 | (16) |
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Thomas Taylor (born January 29, 1932 – died February 6, 1958) was a famous English footballer. He played as a centre-forward, which is like a main attacker. People knew him for being great at heading the ball. Tommy Taylor was one of the eight Manchester United players who sadly passed away in the Munich air disaster.
Contents
Tommy Taylor's Football Journey
Tommy Taylor was born in a place called Smithies, near Barnsley, England. This was on January 29, 1932. He was one of six children in his family.
Tommy started playing football for a team at the coal mine where he worked. Just two years later, he joined the professional club Barnsley. He played his first game for Barnsley when he was only 18 years old. This was on October 7, 1950. In his very next match, he scored three goals! This is called a hat-trick. He scored seven goals in twelve games in his first season. While playing for Barnsley, he also did his national service in the British Army.
Joining Manchester United
Tommy Taylor quickly became a top player. He scored 26 goals in 44 games for Barnsley. Soon, big clubs from the Football League First Division wanted him. In March 1953, he moved to Manchester United. They were the champions at the time.
Manchester United paid a lot of money for him. It was almost £30,000, which was a huge amount back then. The manager, Matt Busby, didn't want Tommy to feel pressured. So, he paid £29,999 and gave the last pound to the tea lady! This made Tommy a "£29,999 player" instead of a "£30,000 player."
Success at Manchester United
Tommy started his time at Manchester United very well. He scored two goals in his first game. By the end of the 1952–53 season, he had scored seven goals in just 11 games.
He was a key player when United won the First Division title. They won it in the 1955–56 and 1956–57 seasons. He also scored in the 1957 FA Cup final. But United lost that game 2–1 to Aston Villa. This meant they didn't win both the league and the FA Cup that year.
Tommy also helped United reach the semi-finals of the European Cup in the 1956–57 season. Manchester United was the first English team to play in this big European competition.
International Recognition
Tommy Taylor was so good that other big clubs wanted him. In 1957, a team from Italy called Internazionale offered £65,000 for him. This would have been one of the most expensive transfers in the world at that time. But Matt Busby said no because he knew how important Tommy was to the team.
Many people thought Tommy would become the main striker for the England national team. He played 19 games for England and scored 16 goals. His first game for England was on May 17, 1953. A week later, he scored his first goal for his country.
He scored two hat-tricks for England. One was against Denmark in a 5–2 win. The other was against Republic of Ireland in a 5–1 win. His last game for England was on November 27, 1957, where he scored two goals in a 4–0 victory against France.
Tommy Taylor's Legacy
Tommy Taylor tragically died in the Munich air disaster on February 6, 1958. He was only 26 years old. He had recently become engaged to his fiancée Carol.
He is buried in Monk Bretton Cemetery in his hometown of Barnsley.
On July 8, 2011, a special blue plaque was put up at 22 Greatstone Road in Stretford. This was a house where many unmarried Manchester United players used to live. Tommy Taylor lived there with other players like David Pegg and Mark Jones. These players also died in the Munich air disaster.
The plaque was sponsored by Stretford High School. Students from the school worked on a local history project about the players. The famous cricket umpire Dickie Bird unveiled the plaque. He went to school with Tommy Taylor in Barnsley.
Honours and Achievements
Tommy Taylor achieved a lot in his short career.
Club Success
- Manchester United
- First Division (League Champions): 1955–56, 1956–57
- FA Charity Shield (Super Cup): 1956, 1957
Individual Recognition
- Football League 100 Legends: In 1998, Tommy Taylor was chosen as one of the 100 greatest players in the Football League's history.
