Kris Taylor (born 12 January 1984) is an English

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

and former professional player who is a player-

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

at club Chasetown. Primarily as a left-sided

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

, he never made the first team at

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

. Instead, he spent over three seasons at

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

after signing in February 2003. He spent two seasons at

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...

from 2007 to 2009 before moving on to Port Vale for another two-season spell. Following this, he signed with

non-League Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

in June 2011, before his

contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...

was terminated in January 2012. He signed with AFC Telford United in August 2012 and was

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

ed out to

Hednesford Town Hednesford Town Football Club is a football club based in Hednesford, Staffordshire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Keys Park. They won the FA Trophy in 2004. History The club was established in 1880 as a merger of t ...

in March 2013. His move to Hednesford was permanent three months later after he helped the club to win the

Birmingham Senior Cup The Birmingham Senior Cup is a regional Association football, football competition for Birmingham County FA club teams, organised by the Birmingham County Football Association. It began in 1876 and is the oldest County Football Association, count ...

and the

Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English Association football, football league that was founded in 1968. Together with the Isthmian League and the Southern Football League, Southern League it forms levels seven and eight of the English footba ...

play-off final. He continued playing for the club after beating

testicular cancer Testicular cancer is cancer that develops in the testicles, a part of the male reproductive system. Symptoms may include a lump in the testicle or swelling or pain in the scrotum. Treatment may result in infertility. Risk factors include an c ...

in 2014, representing Hednesford Town, Rushall Olympic, Stafford Rangers, Sutton Coldfield Town, and

Romulus Romulus (, ) was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus and his contemporaries. Although many of th ...

. He served

Walsall Wood Walsall Wood is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands county, England. It is located middway between the towns of Aldridge and Brownhills, as well as Walsall and Lichfield. History In the late-18th century and ...

as manager from November 2019 to January 2020. He then returned to playing with Chasetown and played in the finals of both the Walsall Senior Cup and

Staffordshire Senior Cup The Staffordshire Senior Challenge Cup is a football cup tournament based in the county of Staffordshire in England first competed for in 1877–78 (then under Sheffield Rules. Organised by the Staffordshire Football Association, it is competed ...

Playing career

Walsall

Taylor was born in

Cannock Cannock () is a town in the Cannock Chase district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It had a population of 29,018. Cannock is not far from the towns of Walsall, Burntwood, Stafford and Telford. The cities of Lichfield and Wolverhampton ...

and was originally on the books of

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

; he was signed by

at the age of 14 for a fee of £200,000. He signed his first professional

on 26 January 2001 but never played for the first team. He left

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...

in February 2003, having featured three times for the reserves, and joined

. Initially playing for the reserves at Walsall, he went on to score on his first-team debut on 31 January 2004 in a 3–2 defeat away at

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...

. He went on to make a further ten first-team appearances for the club that season. He was retained upon the season's conclusion, signing a one-year deal. Walsall having been

relegated Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

in 2003–04, Taylor could still not break into the team in League One. After three cup and three league appearances early in 2004–05 he was put on the

transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies * ...

list by

Paul Merson Paul Charles Merson (born 20 March 1968) is an English former professional footballer, manager, commentator and sports television pundit for Sky Sports. Originally a forward, Merson found success as an attacking midfielder and playmaker late ...

. Taylor went out on

to Burton Albion in December, after he caught the eye of

Nigel Clough Nigel Howard Clough (born 19 March 1966) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Mansfield Town. Playing predominantly as a forward, but later in his career used as a midfielder, Clough was capped by ...

during a

match with Burton. He impressed at Eton Park, making a total of six appearances and scoring four goals. He scored a memorable goal from against Tamworth, and also scored against his future club Hereford in a 3–0 win. He scored four goals in six games for the

Conference A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...

club, making a massive impact in his five weeks in Burton. On his return to the

Bescot Stadium Bescot Stadium, currently known as the Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in the area of Bescot, Walsall, West Midlands, England, and is the current home ground of Walsall Football Club and Aston Vill ...

an offer from

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They have played their ...

was rejected. He signed a new two-year contract at the end of the season. He was a regular in the first team in the first half of the 2005–06 season before returning to Burton Albion in early January. This time, the loan lasted until the end of the season, though Taylor didn't manage to find the form he had reached in his previous loan spell. He scored four goals in 15 games before returning to Walsall in time for the last game of the season. Walsall were

once again in 2005–06, leaving them in League Two for 2006–07 season. He hit forty games for the "Swifts", helping the club achieve promotion as champions. Taylor was not rewarded for his efforts and was instead told to look for a new club by "Saddlers" boss

Richard Money Richard Money (born 13 October 1955) is an English former footballer and manager who was most recently manager of National League club Hartlepool United. Before this, he managed Cambridge United, overseeing the side's return to the Football Leag ...

Hereford United

In July 2007, he signed for

. In his first season with the club he was noted for his versatility, playing at left-back, left midfield and central midfield. In similar form to the previous season, Taylor put in a forty-game season to help his club win promotion to League One, this time with a third-place finish. In contrast to his experience with Walsall, Taylor stayed with the "Bulls" for the 2008–09 campaign. He played 43 games, though could do little to prevent the "Whites" suffering relegation with a last-place finish, 14 points off safety. Holding out on the club's offer of a new contract, he left the club in the summer of 2009 in search of pastures new.

Port Vale

In July 2009 he went out on trial at League Two side Port Vale, and scored from around 20 yards in a 7–0 win over

Rocester Rocester is a village and civil parish in the East Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. Its name is spelt ''Rowcestre'' in the Domesday Book. It is located on the Derbyshire border. Geography The village is about north of Utto ...

in a pre-season friendly. He impressed

Micky Adams Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football Manager (association football), manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 43 ...

on his trial and would have been signed to a contract if the cash-strapped club could find the finance; instead Adams offered Taylor non-contract terms, he signed a short-term deal in early August. This was not enough for Taylor, who resolved to win a long-term contract with the club. His

man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...

performances also persuaded Adams to try to hold on to him. On 25 August he went a long way towards achieving this goal, scoring a wonder goal in a 2–0 win over

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

in the League Cup

Second Round The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

. Unable to find the cash to fund Taylor's wages, the club were aided by a £5,000 donation from 'Vale Volunteers', raised specifically by fans to keep Taylor at the club. He was transfer listed in late September, along with the entire Port Vale squad, after manager Micky Adams saw his team slip to a third consecutive defeat. His second goal of the season came in the local derby at

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. Its first team competes in League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' ...

, Taylor scoring the winner in a 2–1 victory. In October 2009 he signed a new deal that would keep him at the club until the end of the season. He made 49 appearances throughout the season, as his club finished just outside the

play-offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

. He was offered a new one-year contract by the club at the end of the season, which he quickly signed. His manager explained that Taylor's inconsistency prevented a longer contract offer, and Taylor accepted the explanation. He made a slow start to the 2010–11 campaign. In November, he declared that he aimed to re-establish himself into the first team. He got his opportunity to shine when left-back Lee Collins was out of action for a month with split shins. Ending the season with just twenty league appearances throughout the season, he was released from the club in May 2011. Adams said that he had faith in Taylor's ability, but that he hadn't played enough games in 2010–11 to justify a new contract.

Non-League

In June 2011, he signed a one-year contract with

of the Conference National. Manager Mark Cooper stated that "It's a big signing for us, Kris has a great range of passing and is a set piece specialist, he's certainly a player who will excite." Darlington suffered financial difficulties during Taylor's time at the club and his contract was terminated on 16 January 2012, along with the rest of the playing squad and

caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a caret ...

Craig Liddle. However, a surprise decision meant that the club would continue to complete their remaining fixtures, and Taylor returned to Darlington on a non-contract basis. In August 2012, he returned to Port Vale to train and maintain his match fitness. On 9 August, he signed a one-year deal with Conference club AFC Telford United. Manager Andy Sinton said that "We're very fortunate to get somebody of his calibre". Taylor joined

side

on loan in March 2013. He was recalled to the Telford squad for the last two games of the season after Ryan Valentine and Dan Preston both picked up injuries. Telford ended the season in last place and were relegated. Taylor returned to

Keys Park Keys Park, currently known as the PRG Roofing and Construction Ground for sponsorship reasons, is the home of the Hednesford Town Football Club, and is situated on Keys Park Road in the town of Hednesford, Staffordshire. The club previously pl ...

to help the "Pitmen" win the

final against Sutton Coldfield Town and the play-off final against

F.C. United of Manchester Football Club United of Manchester, more commonly known as FC United, is a semi-professional association football, football club based in Moston, Manchester, Moston, Manchester, England, that competes in the , the seventh tier of the English ...

. The move had been made permanent in June when Taylor signed a one-year contract with Hednesford. He made 36 appearances in the 2013–14 season, as the club reached the play-off semi-finals, where they were beaten by

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester, southwest of Sale, Greater Manchester, Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2021 United Kingdom ce ...

. He was named Conference North Player of the Month for February 2024 despite only playing one game as sponsors Skrill wanted to support his battle against cancer. He was released in October 2014. He later played for Rushall Olympic. He joined Stafford Rangers in June 2016, and stated that "I think we're looking at the play-offs as a minimum". However, Rangers only managed to finish 13th in the Northern Premier League Premier Division at the end of 2016–17 season. He rejoined Hednesford Town – local rivals to Stafford Rangers – as a player-

under manager Neil Tooth in May 2017. In May 2017 he was signed by new Sutton Coldfield Town manager Neil Tooth as a player-coach. Four months later he followed Tooth to

. The "Roms" were relegated at the end of the 2017–18 season after finishing bottom of the Northern Premier League Division One South. After his management spell at Walsall Wood ended, he returned to playing with Chasetown of the Northern Premier League Division One South East, making six appearances in the 2020–21 season. He also worked as a coach at the club. He made 31 appearances in the 2021–22 season, scoring one goal, as he helped the "Scholars" to reach the play-offs. He did not feature in the play-off final defeat to Belper Town. He made 37 appearances in the 2022–23 campaign, scoring one goal and making five assists. He continued playing for the club at the age of 40, featuring 32 times in the 2023–24 campaign, including in the Walsall Senior Cup final defeat to Rushall Olympic. He played 37 games in the 2024–25 campaign, including in the

final win over Rushall Olympic.

Management career

Taylor was appointed joint-manager of

Midland League The Midland Football League, officially known as the Capelli Sport Midland Football League since January 2025 for sponsorship reasons, is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midl ...

Premier Division side

, along with Peter Till, in November 2019. The pair were demoted to assistant managers following the re-appointment of former manager

Darren Byfield Darren Asherton Byfield (born 29 September 1976) is a former professional footballer. He is currently a first-team coach at Walsall. Byfield won six caps for Jamaica in 2003, and has scored 110 goals in 484 appearances across all domestic compet ...

in January 2020. The 2019–20 season was formally abandoned due to the coronavirus pandemic in England on 26 March 2020, with all results from the season being expunged, and no promotion or relegation taking place to, from, or within the competition.

Style of play

Former Port Vale and Hereford teammate Lee Collins described Taylor as: "really good on the ball and is also good to have around. He filled in at left-back at Hereford but is also talented in central midfield. He has two good feet but is particularly strong on his left foot. He's got a good touch and a good passing range." Early in his career, he was a goalscoring midfielder, and in January 2005 said that the left-back spot "isn't really me". In addition to his ability to play down the wings, he can also play as a centre-back if the situation dictates.

Personal life

Taylor is a

supporter. In January 2011, his fiancée Jenny gave birth to the couple's first child, Lydia. In January 2014, Taylor was informed he had been diagnosed with

. His tumour was removed and after one dose of

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated chemo, sometimes CTX and CTx) is the type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (list of chemotherapeutic agents, chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) in a standard chemotherapy re ...

he returned to playing football within weeks. He graduated from

Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester Metropolitan University is located in the centre of Manchester, England. The university has 40,000 students and over 4,000 members of staff. It is home to four faculties (Arts and Humanities, Business and Law, Health and Education ...

in July 2016 with a bachelor's degree in Sports Science.

Career statistics

Honours

Walsall * League Two: 2006–07 Hereford United *League Two third-place promotion: 2007–08 Hednesford Town *

: 2013 *

play-offs: 2013 Chasetown * Walsall Senior Cup runner-up: 2024 *

: 2025

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Kris Footballers from Cannock Footballers from Staffordshire English men's footballers Men's association football utility players Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football midfielders Manchester United F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players Hereford United F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Darlington F.C. players AFC Telford United players Hednesford Town F.C. players Rushall Olympic F.C. players Stafford Rangers F.C. players Sutton Coldfield Town F.C. players Romulus F.C. players Chasetown F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Northern Premier League players Midland Football League players English football coaches English football managers Walsall Wood F.C. managers Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University 1984 births Living people 21st-century English sportsmen