Peter Taylor’s daughter says her father would be “incredibly proud” after Nottingham Forest officially renamed a stand in his honour today.
The stand was dedicated to the former assistant manager in a ceremony attended by family and friends.
Taylor joined the club in 1976 and worked alongside Brian Clough for six years, forming a formidable partnership which presided over the most successful period in Forest’s history.
In that time, Clough and Taylor guided the club to the first division title, and famously secured back-to-back European cup victories.
Picture: Statue of Peter Taylor (Right) and Brian Clough, Derby. Photo by Russ Hamer, cropped from original
Speaking at the ceremony, Peter’s daughter Wendy Dickinson said: “I think he would be surprised. It’s a long time since the two European cup wins but I think he’d be incredibly proud because he is Nottingham born and bred.
“He’d be very proud that the club that he loved so much are honouring him in this way.”
Throughout his years at the club Taylor was perhaps a little overshadowed by his superior, but Clough often insisted he couldn’t do his job without him.
“I’m not equipped to manage successfully without him (Taylor). I’m the shop front, he is the goods at the back.” he once famously said of his assistant.
Picture: Taylor (Left) and Clough, pictured as part of a Forest team photo
The pair fell out when Taylor left in 1982, leaving Forest only to become manager of local rivals Derby County six months later.
Taylor died in 1990 and in a move that some fans say is overdue, the Main Stand has become ‘The Peter Taylor Stand’.
John McGovern, who was part of the famous European Cup winning side and now a club ambassador, agreed with fans that this was long overdue for his former coach.
“The recognition that Peter has finally got here at the club was long overdue and I’m delighted that someone has realised that he was an important part of the success at the club.”
Picture: From left Phil Taylor (Son), Laura Dickinson (Granddaughter), Wendy Dickinson (Daughter), John McGovern
McGovern also played down the idea that Taylor was merely an assistant to Clough, stating:
“I don’t think he was ever an assistant. He and Brian were a managerial duo and although he was labelled as an assistant, he was certainly more than that.
“He’d have players falling around in fits of laughter at team meetings whereas Brian was the one who did most of the talking.”
Clough, whose stand sits opposite Taylor’s at the City Ground, died in 2004.
