Cod Almighty | Article

by Pat Bell

27 September 2006

We have become a little sceptical of the concept of young home-grown talent. We remember Oster, but since then there has been a succession of players whose careers form a bleak parabola from promising youngster to enthusiastic debutant to North Ferriby United or Armthorpe Welfare.

When Andy Taylor made it to the subs' bench, and a fleeting home debut against Macclesfield, it suggested nothing so much as the depth of our injury crisis. Not 18 until October, he did not feature in the initial first team squad, despite a prolific season for the youth side, including seven goals in a single match.

He first got the chance to show what he can do at Rochdale. The very first impression was not promising: a typical young hopeful with mobility and enthusiasm, but lightweight, tending to the anonymous. However, his head didn't drop. He'd run, and sometimes the ball would bounce off him, but increasingly often he brought it under control. Occasionally he would be brushed off the ball, but then suddenly sheer perseverance meant it was him doing the brushing, at the bye-line, to get in a cross that might have produced an equaliser had it not been so unexpected. The fairytale had to wait until Chester, when a calm finish secured Town's first away win of the season.

Is he a Ford or a Rowan? It's too early to judge: a phrase that a few Town supporters might do well to use a little more often.