WBridgfordowl Posted October 23, 2012 Share Posted October 23, 2012 It's sad, but I'm afraid if we are going to re-name any parts of the ground, it will be to a sponsor with some cash to invest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorian gray Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Eric Taylor - Man who served the club for over 40 years in different capacities, ranging from junior runner to team manager and club secretary. A man who only ever had the best interests of the club at heart, who won three promotions to the top flight, and transformed Hillsborough from a run of the mill ground to a state of the art stadium capable of hosting FA Cup semi-finals and World Cup quarter finals Dave Allen - Man who served the club for five years, and spent all of that time alienating the fanbase, destroying club morale and suing fans. The comparison is obscene. my guess is i've been watching this football club more than twice as long as you have, and without any hesitation what so ever those two were the two most unpopular chairmen during that time... i didn't attempt to suggest that he was as bad, or even worse than allen, merely at which extremity of the scale he belonged, and not at the end some seem to think he deserves... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torryowl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 my guess is i've been watching this football club more than twice as long as you have, and without any hesitation what so ever those two were the two most unpopular chairmen during that time... i didn't attempt to suggest that he was as bad, or even worse than allen, merely at which extremity of the scale he belonged, and not at the end some seem to think he deserves... FFS HOW MANY MORE TIMES .....HE WAS NEVER CHAIRMAN ........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KivoOwl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 my guess is i've been watching this football club more than twice as long as you have, and without any hesitation what so ever those two were the two most unpopular chairmen during that time... i didn't attempt to suggest that he was as bad, or even worse than allen, merely at which extremity of the scale he belonged, and not at the end some seem to think he deserves... He was never chairman... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torryowl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 this myth that they spent money on the ground to the detriment of the team .....the north was built for 150k(12 years later the blunts built a mini replica for over a million ) and was paid for by fans buying debentures that gave them certain priveliges .the club got a grant towards doing the west stand and uncovered seats from fifa for the 1966 world cup and the shortfall was made up by a lottery the club ran . i believe theres a plaque somewhere on the west stand that states how the stand was funded . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lincs Owl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 let's call it the eric taylor and dave allen stand... in the popularity stakes over the years i've been watching the wednesday these two WERE THE LEAST POPULAR chairmen... forget the books... to attempt to call the 'north' or 'cantilever' as it was then 'the eric taylor stand' would be so far off the mark as to be unbelieveable... IT WAS THE NORTH STAND IN GENERAL THAT LED THE "TAYLOR OUT" CHANTS AS THOSE NORTH STAND SUPPORTERS HURLED THE CUSHIONS ONTO THE FIELD YET AGAIN... FACE IT, THE MAN WAS LOATHED... Loathed by who? Yes- we might have won the league in 60-61 if we had bought a decent centre-forward. Catterick wanted Joe Baker but we didn't have a spare £50,000. We could never compete with Tottenham, Everton, Man Utd in terms of money taken at the gate. And there was no TV dosh in those days. He was wrongly blamed for using all our cash on the North Stand. The North Stand cost(£150,000 to build) was raised by issuing 15,000 debentures of £10 each, if I remember right. Didn't cost the club anything, apart from interest. The fans paid for it. 90% of our fans realized that. A few are never happy. You seem to be one of them. Would love the Eric Taylor days back. As a manager, he took us to THREE Div two(ie Championship level) championships in 8 years. Plus one runners-up position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
since59owe Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Eric was invilved in an horific Road Traffic Accident in 1967. He was lucky to live but his influence wained after that incident and his health deteriorated rapidly. He died in 1974 and his passing away co-incided with the club sinking to its lowest level in league football. As for the sale of Albert Quixall. It was Harry Catterick's decision to sell him. Many people will agree with me that Quixall never reached his full potential at Man Utd and, in my opinion, Wednesday never missed him because Johnny Fantham stepped into the breach admirably. (Yet another Eric Taylor discovery) The main point I wanted to get over in my book was that the greatest team I have ever seen in over 55 years (the team that finished runners up to Spurs in 1960/61) was assembled by Eric Taylor. Only one player was added by Catterick (Bobby Craig) True. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buxtongent Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 (edited) For years, Taylor was Club Secretary, then became Secretary Manager. Yes , he got what was in my opinion the totally unjustified reputation of spending more on the ground than the team, but he was never on the board. This was ruled by a certain Dr Andrew Stephens, who imo used Wednesday simply as a vehicle to attain a top position in the FA. It was in Eric Taylor's time that Wednesday were to become known as a big-spending club.He was vilified throughout the press for spending the OUTRAGEOUS sum of £32,500 for one player, Jackie Sewell, and for breaking the record for a Goalkeeper in bringing a certain Ron Springett to the club. He did spend money on the team, and was also reponsible for helping to set up the original 'Inter-Cities Fairs' Cup attracting such names as Barcelona, and Roma. He was also instrumental in arranging a great number of FA Cup Semi-Finals, Friendly Matches and for helping to secure the ground as a venue for the '66 World cup. As for the Catterick saga, don't forget that we had Vic Buckingham, and to take us to Wembley, Alan brown. And we never went into a position where we could have been put into Administration. Yes, I was one who grumbled that 'Taylor thought more of the ground than the team' but age and experience show a fresh light on things. Don't forget that, after being saved from administration, going on an unbeaaten 18 match run, gaining automatic promotion, then hitting a losing streak, many Wed. Fans are calling for the head of the Manager. It is part of the pattern of being a Wednesdayite to grumble. Edited October 24, 2012 by Buxtongent 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lincs Owl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Eric was invilved in an horific Road Traffic Accident in 1967. He was lucky to live but his influence wained after that incident and his health deteriorated rapidly. He died in 1974 and his passing away co-incided with the club sinking to its lowest level in league football. As for the sale of Albert Quixall. It was Harry Catterick's decision to sell him. Many people will agree with me that Quixall never reached his full potential at Man Utd and, in my opinion, Wednesday never missed him because Johnny Fantham stepped into the breach admirably. (Yet another Eric Taylor discovery) The main point I wanted to get over in my book was that the greatest team I have ever seen in over 55 years (the team that finished runners up to Spurs in 1960/61) was assembled by Eric Taylor. Only one player was added by Catterick (Bobby Craig) You wrote the book? Andrew Cooper himself? I bought it. I have every book written on Wednesday, including the original 1926 Romance of the Wednesday... apart from a couple of kid's books and hooligan books. Lavishly illustrated- I recommend it. Brought back many memories- I started going regularly in 1958 so was lucky enough to witness most of the glory days. In 3 successive weeks in 1959, we beat Arsenal 5-1, Chelsea 4-0 and West Ham 7-0. West Ham were top of Div One at the time. All with Eric Taylor's discoveries. We even finished that WHU game with 10 men- Tony Kay got stretchered off with nearly 30 minutes to go- no subs in those days. Annoying to read some of the Anti-Taylor tripe on here. He should have a statue at the ground at the very least. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buxtongent Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Is it available on Kindle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legendaryswan Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Eric Taylor was known as Mr Sheffield Wednesday,he had vision way ahead of his time.Alas his vision wasnt always shared by the board and chairmen he worked with. He was never the same guy after the car accident,it scarred him both physically AND mentally. He transformed this club,even manutd lagged behind us stadium wise,and had to catch us up,his vision was european football in a first rate venue.Alas to a large extent the betting scandle robbed us of two irreplaceable pieces of that vision. I recall the transfer of mccalliog in 65,was meant to be a double transfer,of wehich eric did much of the work and the board backed him,it was meant to be a double transfer includint Boltons wyn davies,but he failed to agree terms and instead went to newcastle some months later. Everything the guy did was to take the club foreward,and bring reward and recognition into the football club. Eric was wednesday throughout his time here,and while he never fully reached his goal,he can look back at his time with tremendous pride and achievement. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevthelodgemoorowl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 Eric Taylor was known as Mr Sheffield Wednesday,he had vision way ahead of his time.Alas his vision wasnt always shared by the board and chairmen he worked with. He was never the same guy after the car accident,it scarred him both physically AND mentally. He transformed this club,even manutd lagged behind us stadium wise,and had to catch us up,his vision was european football in a first rate venue.Alas to a large extent the betting scandle robbed us of two irreplaceable pieces of that vision. I recall the transfer of mccalliog in 65,was meant to be a double transfer,of wehich eric did much of the work and the board backed him,it was meant to be a double transfer includint Boltons wyn davies,but he failed to agree terms and instead went to newcastle some months later. Everything the guy did was to take the club foreward,and bring reward and recognition into the football club. Eric was wednesday throughout his time here,and while he never fully reached his goal,he can look back at his time with tremendous pride and achievement. PML When Wyn Davis went to the Geordies, I did n't rate him but then I did n't rate Ritchie (post 66) that highly iether. We did have to wait a little but when he came along David Layne (Bronco) was worth the wait but then it all went boobies up ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torryowl Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 PML When Wyn Davis went to the Geordies, I did n't rate him but then I did n't rate Ritchie (post 66) that highly iether. We did have to wait a little but when he came along David Layne (Bronco) was worth the wait but then it all went boobies up ! who you think is the better between layne and hirst nev ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legendaryswan Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 PML When Wyn Davis went to the Geordies, I did n't rate him but then I did n't rate Ritchie (post 66) that highly iether. We did have to wait a little but when he came along David Layne (Bronco) was worth the wait but then it all went boobies up ! Yeah Wyn was one we were lucky to miss :) Wed have been far better with Dougan,but his reputation made him a risky gamble,id have loved to have Doog at hillsbro. In relation to Layne and Hirsty,they were both pretty simular,Layne was on the verge of his first cap before the betting scandal. Iv known David since i was a nipper,he hates the Bronco tag,i always had my pre match beans on toast at his cafe prior to games,and a quick go on the pinball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickjj Posted October 24, 2012 Share Posted October 24, 2012 I have stated numerous times on this site that the North Stand be named after Eric Taylor. How many people come on here and say how much they hate the new stadiums that have been built and bang on about how unique Hillsborough is. Well that is all down to Mr Taylor. It would have been nice to have had it done last year to coincide with his wife's 100 th birthday. My opinion might be a little bias as I am good friends with his son but I am in full support of Dunsbyowl's proposal 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorian gray Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 Sorry kiddo, you don't have a clue. Ask your dad what he thought about Eric Taylor, and unless he has a terrible memory, dulled by time, he wont have a good word to say. As manager I believe he got us promoted three times, but each time we were promoted, he also got us relegated. When he took over the running of the club, after finishing as manager, harry catterick took over as manager, and left for Everton, I believe, because Taylor wouldn''t invest money in the squad. We got the World Cup games at Hillsborough in 1966, and FA CUp semi finals as well, due to the fact that Taylor spent his money on the ground, not on the team. In 1966, we had a young team, in fact I think at the time they had the youngest average age of any team which ever played in an FA Cup Final, and four years later, we were relegated, because yet again, we refused to invest in the team. Thanks for the stadium Eric, but I'd much rather have kept Catterick as manager and had a team which were realistic challengers for major honours, playing in a so so stadium, as opposed to a succession of poor teams and managers, playing in a state of the art (at the time) stadium. thank you, i was beginning to think i'd spent the back end of the 60's and early part of the 70's in someone else's ground... or, imagined the roar of the 'cantilever' wanting him out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyCraig6 Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 I wrote and self published Eric's biography back in 2011. At the time of publication (2011) it coincided with the 50th anniversary of the opening of the North Stand which all Owls fans know was the brainchild of Eric. It was also the year that Eric's widow celebrated her 100th birthday! My wife and I were proud to be invited to her party by her sons. I sent a copy of my book to Mr Mandaric along with a request for the North Stand to be named after Eric. My request was refused. I sent another copy to Mr Chansiri with the same request. My request was refused again. All Owls fans may be interested to learn that my book will be on sale again in the megastore very shortly after another print run. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyCraig6 Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 In reply to Dorian Gray I would like to ask him how many players in the team that finished runners up to Spurs were signed by Catterick. Catterick's signings were Bobby Craig (Third Lanark £7500) and Johnny Quinn (Prescott Cables, peanuts) Johnny Quinn only played a handful of games in that season. That team consisted of players that Eric Taylor signed and discovered. If it hadn't have been for Spurs being so dominant that season we would have been champions. By the way, who were the first team to beat them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inspector Lestrade Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 On 23/10/2012 at 09:25, BarnOwl55 said: I believe it would be entirely fitting to name the North stand after him. Time to do just that I'd kinda be OK with that but for many fans he's from the dark past and they have never heard of him or at least he doesn't come into their thinking. If we were to name a stand after someone it would more logical to name the stand after someone who the majority of the fans can relate to. But I know where your coming from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gurujuan Posted September 21, 2019 Share Posted September 21, 2019 A nice man, used to live next door to his son, when I lived in Sheffield Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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