Tommy Taylor
Taylor in August 1955
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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 | ||
| 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) |
| National team | |||
| 1953–1957 | England | 19 | (16) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Thomas "Tommy" Taylor (29 January 1932 – 6 February 1958) was an English footballer, who was known for his aerial ability. He was one of the eight Manchester United players who lost their lives in the Munich air disaster.
He was born in Smithies, near Barnsley, in January 1932, one of six children born to Charles and Violet Taylor. He was a pupil at Raley Secondary Modern School where he attended after failing his eleven-plus.
Taylor began his career playing for a local coal mining team at the colliery where he worked. At the age of just 16, local scouts offered him the chance to play for Barnsley, whom he joined in July 1949. He made his first team debut on 7 October 1950, in a 3–1 home win against Grimsby Town. In his next match, on 4 November 1950, Taylor scored a hat-trick in a 7–0 victory against Queens Park Rangers. In all he scored seven goals in twelve appearances in 1950–51. While playing for Barnsley, he carried out national service in the British Army.
After scoring 26 goals in 44 games at Barnsley, who had been unable to progress beyond the Second Division, Taylor was transferred to defending First Division champions Manchester United in March 1953 for the unusual fee of £29,999. Matt Busby did not want to burden Taylor as being a "£30,000 player", so he took a £1 note from his wallet and handed it to the lady who had been serving tea during the negotiations. At the time, he was one of the most expensive players in British football and had also been subject of interest from clubs including Sheffield Wednesday, Derby County and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
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