Retirement

It is very rare, as I have mentioned before here for a Cobblers season to end without everything resting on the very last games. As a general rule we are either up for promotion or fighting relegation. This season we did flirt with relegation but thankfully achieved the points necessary to avoid it before the very last games. So Friday night which was our last home game of the season would have been a bit of a non-event were it not for the retirement of former Aston Villa legend Ian Taylor.

Ian has played for us for the past two seasons. He will be 39 on 4th June. He plays for the sheer love of the game, has been a fantastic influence on the younger players (that would, thinking about it, mean ALL the other players), and is unfailing friendly and chatty with supporters. He had a late start in professional football having a proper job first and playing non-league football until he went to Port Vale aged 24. Maybe that was why he appreciated it all so much.

There were loads of Villa fans at our match on Friday to say goodbye to him who we were all really pleased to see there(poor sods - it was an awful match!). He was substituted after about an hour and the standing ovation he got from Huddersfield fans as well as home ones brought a tear to many an eye. Taylor responded by thanking all four corners of the stadium and threw his boots over his shoulder as he left the pitch. "There's only one Ian Taylor," was the song from the stands.

Thanks Ian. Great professional. Even better bloke. It has been emotional.