Welcome to the third instalment of ‘My Football Journey’, our feature designed to tell the stories of the Albion Women players and how they came to love the beautiful game.
Harriet Grimshaw and Rhianne Oakley have taken to telling their football tales in our latest features; now it’s full-back Taylor Reynolds’ opportunity to discuss her story within the sport in our dedicated series.
From taking on her self-proclaimed ‘Assistant Manager’ role at Redditch United U14s alongside her Dad, to marking Beth Mead while at Birmingham City, she covers a variety of subjects along the way.
So, without further ado, let’s get started…
Taylor, let’s start off with your earliest memory of football…
I would say my earliest memory of football is probably playing with my brother and his football team. My Dad was the coach at Redditch United; it must’ve been U14s, and I was 12 at the time. I just got involved in that because I was bored on the sideline watching.
Do you remember the first match that you went to watch?
I used to watch my brother play, and I used to sit in the dugout with my Dad. I’m pretty sure I even ran the line one time, with the Lino; I must stress I was allowed to - I just ran alongside. I’ve been to a few Birmingham City men’s matches when I was in the Academy there, and then obviously plenty of Albion games since coming here. My family support Tottenham Hotspur, so we watch them a lot on television.
What football shirts did you used to wear growing up?
If I’m being honest, there was a lack of football shirts for me. I bought my own one, but that wasn’t too long ago, actually, and it had Harry Kane on the back, which makes no sense as I’m not a striker. I didn’t massively enjoy wearing football kits either.
What was the first team you played for?
Once I’d started taking over my brother’s football team, my said, ‘That’s enough, we need to get you into a girls’ team.’ I signed for Redditch United U12s at the time, and I was only there for a year or two; then I played for Inkberrow FC, and after a few years of playing at grassroots level, I was scouted by Blues.
Your Dad still comes to every match; it must be nice for him and your family to have watched your journey from then until now…
I think my Dad enjoys it more than me sometimes. He’s very passionate, and absolutely loves coming to watch. He wants the team to do well, and he gives me a debrief after most; it’s like having my own analyst, really. But I always value his opinion, and he loves coming - I can’t imagine him not being at a game, and if he wasn’t, I’d be gutted.
What’s been your favourite moment in football so far?
I don’t really have that many memorable moments. I don’t score many goals, but the ones I do score are always good experiences. The goal against Liverpool Feds was a great experience, as we scored a great team goal, and it was one of my favourite moments. As for my favourite game, I enjoyed beating Wolves for Albion last term in the FAWNL Cup. Playing against Arsenal for Blues was incredible too, after making my debut against London City Lionesses in the Conti Cup. The Arsenal one was more memorable because I came off the bench and marked Beth Mead.
Do you have a best stadium that you’ve been to or played at?
I have to start with The Hawthorns because it’s always special to play there. I can’t miss that one. I enjoyed playing at St James’s Park in a double fixture there - the men had just played before us, so there were a good 6,000 people in the stadium watching us.
