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Some great names, sharing many great and special memories, and heart-warming stories from great connections to Huddersfield Town.

It is true that, to me anyway, virtually all who have pulled on the Blue and White stripes of Huddersfield Town becomes an instant hero, almost a legend in the making.

Few may fall by the wayside of soccer, many give distinguished service to our Club and several indeed achieve true legendary status.

A very small number seem to fit into a niche of their own Ken Taylor certainly does. Huddersfield Town footballer, Yorkshire and England cricketer, 'no other son of the shire ever entered both First Division football and first-class cricket when still 18 years of age', Artist & Teacher.

Ken's elder brother by 5 years, Jeff was a gifted sportsman with an equally artistic temperament also playing football for Town, scoring in four of his first five matches. That is until Jeff Taylor the footballer became Neilson Taylor the opera singer.

As a footballer Ken played alongside legendary names such as Ray Wilson, Denis Law, Big John Coddington and Mike O'Grady and under the managership of 'Shanks' himself. Equally famous names arise in his cricketing world with team-mates of the calibre of Ray Illingworth, F.S. Trueman, one Geoffrey Boycott, and a certain 'Dickie' Bird, all skippered by Brian Close. In the years between 1959 and 1968 Taylor's Yorkshire amassed seven County Championship successes, a glorious era and one I well remember with the greatest of pride

After making his debut at Anfield that March day in 1954 with the visitors triumphant 3-1, his home debut followed a week later as Newcastle were beaten 3-2 and Town went on to win four of his first 5 matches for them, scoring 15 conceding 7. Just two more appearances were to come his way that season.

Here it is worth stopping and considering the merits of this, the debut season of Ken Taylor, from a Club prospective. Town had topped Division One after just four games of 1953/54 and from 12^th September onwards were never out of the top four attracting the highest ever average Home League Attendance in our history: 30,820. A final league placing of 3^rd was our loftiest since 1936, a height we have never achieved since. Despite a passing of over half a century!

The following 1954/55 season saw the young stopper become the defensive lynch pin of the Town team as he replaced Don McEvoy in making 36 league and 6 FA Cup appearances. The following season saw a similar tally of games played though just one FA Cup tie as Town finished 2^nd bottom of Division One and relegation. Thus the rest of his Town career would be spent in Division Two.

A career that encompassed some 12 years and saw him make 269 appearances for Huddersfield Town scoring 14 goals, the first of which came in February 1957 against West Ham United the following 3 all in the same 90 minutes as the visitors were put to the sword 6-2.

His final appearance came in the opening New Year fixture of 1965 as Town were beaten on Tyneside 1-2. Whilst one Town career was coming to a close the late consolation goal scorer that day, Tony Leighton was just starting his in the Blue and White stripes.

In all Ken Taylor made 301 league appearances making him one of a famous threesome. Of England's Test cricketers who have had significant footballing careers just three have made more than 100 league appearances, along with Ken are Chris Balderstone (524) and Willie Watson (255). All sons of Huddersfield.

For the past thirty odd years Mr Taylor has lived in a tiny hamlet in Norfolk teaching and painting. A long way from Orchard Terrace, Primrose Hill where in August, 1935 he was born. Some twenty years on the front cover of Charles Buchan's Football Monthly the finest read of the day for a footballing mad youngster like myself, bore an action picture of Ken Taylor. With the prophesy that here was a future England centre-half.

Such is the quality of the latest in our 'Legends' feature. Footballer; Cricketer; Artist; Teacher; you can take your pick. Indeed it is said he may have achieved more if he had concentrated on just the one of his many abilities. But how would you choose when life has given you so many talents to appreciate and enjoy.

For that the last word must go to Mr Taylor himself, "If you took out any of the three strands of my life it would have meant my missing out on so much pleasure, so much satisfaction."

Thank goodness Sir you took the full length of the journey that life has given you for all Town loving Yorkshire folk would have missed so very much if you had never pulled on the White Rose of your birth and the shirt of your home Town football club.

www.thisisthevarmyarmy.co.uk would like to say a big thank you to Ken Taylor for taking the time to become our latest 'Legend' and to acknowledge the debt we owe in this feature to Ken, and to Stephen Chalke of Fairfield Books, in Bath the copyright holders of Ken Taylor Drawn to Sport from which we have gleaned so much for our feature.

In "Drawn to Sport" Stephen Chalke's profile of Ken offers fascinating glimpses of the very different worlds of sport and art. Illustrated with drawings and paintings of some of the people and places that have marked Ken's life, the book also offers new perspectives on some of the great figures in English sport in the 1950's and 1960's, for example Geoff Boycott, Fred Trueman, Bill Shankly and Denis Law.

Ken was born in Huddersfield on August 21, 1935.

Now over to Ken's view of Huddersfield Town then and now ...

1 What is your impression of Huddersfield Town now?
Sad, can only improve.

2 What did you think on joining Town?
I'd have played for them for nothing.

3 Any regrets later in leaving Town.
None. I enjoyed every minute.

4 Memories of Town? Earliest-vivid-now
Alf Young & Roy Goodall both great players for Huddersfield & England, created a good team spirit and a happy atmosphere.

5 Most memorable moment? Goal-save-tackle
Read pages 92, 74, 67, 50 in my book Drawn to Sport.

Town beaten at St James' Park in a FA Cup 6^th Round replay after a 1-1 draw at Leeds Road when the Magpies Len White equalised with but minutes to go.

Before just 5,878 hardy spectators on a bitterly cold February day in 1957 and just 45 minutes after the referee decided to play Town took to the field against a West Ham side on a seven match winning run. As would happen three years later in very similar conditions Town put on a dazzling display of soccer. Wearing the number 9 Ken Taylor hit the target on 4 occasions. From the Centre Forward spot a further 9 games doubled that tally for the season.

Saturday 21 December 1957 Charlton Athletic 7 Huddersfield Town 6. Does one need to say more? Perhaps - that with just 30 minutes to play and against ten men Town were 5-1 up!!

For his last memorable moment Ken remembers a Town & Yorkshire team mate, the late Chris Balderstone. A fellow Hudderfielder who one September day came off the cricket field at Chesterfield at 6.30, with 51 runs to his name, and an hour later, 25 miles away he was running out of the tunnel at Doncaster's Belle Vue ground to face Brentford.

6 Longest lasting Town memory?
Happy Days.

7 What do you think of the current state of soccer?
I don't watch much (too predictable).

8 Do you still follow the Town results or any other Club or Sports?
I always look for Town's result first, then Norwich City.

First match for Town against Liverpool.

Page 50

Ken's Town debut, wearing No 5, was indeed at Anfield in a Division One fixture on 6^th March 1954 with Town running out 3-1 winners - but it was not the game talked about on page 50 as Mr T mentions! His Home debut followed a week later in a 3-2 win over Newcastle whilst another United over the Pennines in Manchester were next up as they lowered Towns colours in a 3-1 home win. Opposing number 9's in these latter two fixtures - Jackie Milburn and Tommy Taylor.

The game mentioned on page 50 and the book in question is titled KEN TAYLOR DRAWN TO SPORT, written by Stephen Chalke and to whom we give credit for the following script.

'The match at Anfield had been a highlight for Ken. The Kop's idol Billy Liddell had been moved to centre-forward that season, and in icy conditions Ken - suffering from reaction to an inoculation and a doubtful starter at one point - snuffed him out of the game. It was a performance which brought a glowing tribute from the former England goalkeeper Frank Swift in his report'.

"Taylor hasn't the elegance and the grooming yet. He's still a bit coltish. But at the rate he's going, he'll be quite a player when he grows up" So wrote Frank Swift.

They were great in the past and knowledgeable about the game.

To be successful now the club needs money, lots of it, you buy success.

Draw, paint & teach.

A return to a maximum wage system which would spread the good players more evenly and make success less predictable.

Use the Rugby Union & League rule that no player apart from the captain is allowed to speak to the referee, decent should not be tolerated, sin bin used for any player who steps out of line.