Ryan Paul Taylor (born 4 May 1988) is an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

plays as a striker for

National League North The National League North, officially known as Vanarama National League North for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Association football league in England. National League North is the second division of the National League (English footb ...

side

Alfreton Town Alfreton Town Football Club is a football club based in Alfreton, Derbyshire, England. The club are currently members of and play at North Street. History The club was formed in 1959 following the merger of Alfreton Miners Welfare and Alf ...

. He has previously played for

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional association football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. The team plays in EFL League One, the third tier of English football, after suffering relegation fr ...

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club moved its home g ...

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third level of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club has played ...

, Newport County and

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...

Career

Rotherham United and loans

Born in

Rotherham Rotherham ( ) is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Rother, South Yorkshire, River Rother, from which the town gets its name, and the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don. It is the largest settlement ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

, Taylor began his career as a trainee at

in July 2005, making his first-team debut as an 81st-minute substitute in a 1–0 home defeat to

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

. He made twelve first-team appearances in the 2006–07 season before

glandular fever A gland is a cell or an organ in an animal's body that produces and secretes different substances that the organism needs, either into the bloodstream or into a body cavity or outer surface. A gland may also function to remove unwanted substances ...

ruled him out for the rest of the season in November 2006. Following Rotherham's relegation to League Two at the end of the 2006–07 season, he signed a new two-year contract, and then joined

Conference National The National League, officially known as Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in England. The National League is the first division of the National League (English football), National Le ...

side

on a one-month loan in September 2007. On his return to Rotherham, he established himself in the first team and scored his first goal for Rotherham in a 2–0 win over

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...

in November 2007. By the end of the 2007–08 season, Taylor had made 38 appearances for Rotherham, scoring six goals.

Mark Robins Mark Gordon Robins (born 22 December 1969) is an English football manager and former player who is the manager of club Stoke City. As a player, he was a striker and is best known for his time in the Premier League with Manchester United, Norw ...

twice extended Taylor's contract: in May 2008 and then the following year, each time by one year. This surprised some supporters and critics, who questioned Robins' persistence with the young striker.

Ronnie Moore Ronald David Moore (born 29 January 1953) is an English football manager and former player. He has taken charge of several clubs, including Rotherham United, Tranmere Rovers and Hartlepool United. He is currently the chief scout at Hartlepool ...

again took charge of the Millers at the start of the 2009–10 season, by which time Taylor had scored 10 goals in almost 100 appearances, sending him out on loan to

. Taylor made an immediate impact to the Exeter squad, helping them avoid relegation and receiving Man of the Match awards on several occasions. He returned to his hometown club in time for the play-off finals, where he went straight into the starting line up on the strength of his performances at Exeter, and scored two goals in the final at

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...

Bristol City

On 20 June 2011, Taylor signed a three-year deal with

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

side

for an undisclosed fee. He made his Robins debut on 17 August, but in a 1–2 loss to

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

; Taylor netted his first goal for the club on 28 April 2012, in a 1–1 away draw against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. Despite featuring more regularly in his second season, Taylor failed to make an impression and left the club in January 2014, with the Robins being relegated to League One in the process.

Portsmouth

On 9 January 2014, Taylor left Bristol City and signed an 18-month deal with League Two side

, being handed the number 20 shirt. He made his debut for Pompey two days later, starting in a 0–0 draw against

. On 24 February 2015, Taylor scored two goals in the last 10 minutes to ensure Pompey's comeback against

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...

and guide them to a 3–2 win, after Pompey had trailed 0–2.

Oxford United

On 26 May 2015, Taylor signed for fellow League Two side

on a two-year deal. He was a first-team regular during the first half of the 2015–16 season, but missed the second half through injury, at the end of which Oxford were promoted to League One. He returned to regular first-team appearances the following season, though often as a substitute. His contract was ended by mutual consent at the end of the January transfer window in 2017, and he signed immediately for

, promotion-chasers in League Two. In his one and a half seasons with Oxford, he scored 4 league goals in 43 appearances (19 as substitute), 3 FA Cup goals and once in the Football League Trophy.

Plymouth Argyle

On 30 January 2017, Taylor signed for League Two side

on a free transfer. The 28-year-old forward became Derek Adams' fourth signing of the January transfer window to further bolster the Pilgrims' attacking options going into the crucial final part of their promotion challenge. Taylor made his debut for Argyle on 4 February during a 1–0 away win against

Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They currently compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed the U’s, the club h ...

, and scored his first goal for the club on his home debut, a 3–0 victory over local rivals

on 11 February. Taylor re-signed for

at the end of the 2017–18 season. His contract was not renewed by

at the end of the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

affected 2019–20 season.

Newport County

On 20 August 2020 Taylor joined Newport County on a one-year deal. He made his debut for Newport on 5 September 2020 as a second-half substitute in the 2–0

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

win against

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...

. He scored his first goal for Newport County on 12 September 2020 in the 1–1 draw against

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in ...

on the first day of the 2020–21 League Two season. Taylor played for Newport in the League Two playoff final at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

on 31 May 2021 which Newport lost to

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, England, on Morecambe Bay, part of the Irish Sea. In 2011 the parish had a population of 34,768. Name The first use of the name was by John Whit ...

, 1-0 after a 107th-minute penalty. On 4 June 2021 it was announced that he would leave Newport County at the end of the season, following the expiry of his contract.

Grimsby Town

On 22 June 2021, Taylor joined

on a one-year contract. Taylor scored a diving header to make it 3-3 against

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

in the National League play-off semi-final, Grimsby would win the game 4-5 following extra time. Taylor played in the

2022 National League play-off final The 2022 National League play-off final, known as the Vanarama National League Promotion Final for sponsorship reasons, was an association football match played on 5 June 2022 at the London Stadium between Solihull Moors F.C., Solihull Moors and ...

as Grimsby beat

Solihull Moors Solihull Moors Football Club is a professional association football club based in Solihull, England. The club currently competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, after achieving promotion from the Na ...

2–1 at the

London Stadium London Stadium (formerly and also known as the Olympic Stadium and the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park) is a multi-purpose outdoor stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in the Stratford, London, Stratford district of London. It is loc ...

to return to the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

. On 24 June 2022, Grimsby announced Taylor has signed a new one-year contract of their 2022–23

EFL League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...

campaign. Taylor was part of the Grimsby side that reached the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

quarter finals for the first time since 1939, he came on as a substitute during the 2-1 win away at

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

side

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

that sealed the achievement. On 9 May 2023, it was announced that Taylor would not be retained for the 2023–24 season and would be leaving the club when his contract expires on 30 June.

Alfreton Town

On 21 June 2023, Taylor signed for

side

Career statistics

Honours

Rotherham United * League Two play-off finalists 2009–10 Newport County * League Two play-off finalists 2020–21 Grimsby Town *

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

play-off winners:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Ryan 1988 births Living people Footballers from Rotherham English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Rotherham United F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players Exeter City F.C. players Bristol City F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Plymouth Argyle F.C. players English Football League players Oxford United F.C. players Newport County A.F.C. players Grimsby Town F.C. players 21st-century English sportsmen