Brief profile of Matthew Taylor by Matthew Reed

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Player:

M Taylor

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DateLine: 14th November 2005

 

Bolton born Matthew Taylor was given his Derbyshire debut on the turning track at Sophia Gardens after some good performances for the Second XI, and after fellow left arm spinner Richard Sladdin had suffered some horror shows in both the first and second team. He turned in a tidy performance, taking three victims as Derbyshire won by 8 wickets. Both his economy (2.49) and average with the ball (29.28) were excellent, despite one uncomfortable encounter with the spin loving Mike Gatting at Derby. However, he seemed to fall out of favour soon after, despite Derbyshire winning the last match he played in chocolate, blue and amber. Despite Sladdin’s release at the end of 1994, Taylor did not feature in 1995. He played a full season of second XI cricket, although the newly acquired Andy Cottam and Tom Harrison both batted and bowled ahead of him, and were preferred in the first team, despite their own poor returns. After two excellent performances for the Lancashire cricket board in the early rounds of the Natwest in 2000, he appeared a number of times for his home county’s second team, although no contract was forthcoming, despite some useful performances. Taylor played an unintentional part in a piece of cricketing history in July 1994, when he became Middlesex bowler Richard Johnson’s tenth and final wicket in the Derbyshire second innings.

 

(November 2005)

 

(Article: Copyright © 2005 Matthew Reed)