The Joe Root Kop

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SwissBlade said:
Apparently he just needs another century to get a stand named after him. As it stands the plans are for the 'joe Root flag and badge stall' on the corner of shoreham and cherry st.
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Is that right beside the sean bean wall murial of when saturday comes ?
 
Or for tennis fans… one for the oldsters - the Roger Taylor stand… dunno if he was a blade but he was a good tennis player.
 
Aston max said:
Such a nice bloke, he was my aunts cousin if he came over always had time with us kids to play tennis in the street.
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Wimbledon semi finalist in 1970 and 1973. Lost to Ken Rosewall (Australia) and Jan Kodes (Cze). I remember watching both, I think Taylor was 2-1 up in sets against Kodes in a rain interrupted match. Kodes won in the final.
 
Silent Blade said:
Wimbledon semi finalist in 1970 and 1973. Lost to Ken Rosewall (Australia) and Jan Kodes (Cze). I remember watching both, I think Taylor was 2-1 up in sets against Kodes in a rain interrupted match. Kodes won in the final.
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Tennis was a big thing in our house ,my dad played at county level .
Amongst being a footballer for worksop town and playing cricket ( I'm afraid I was a disappointment ) , I preferred rugby before football.
 

Silent Blade said:
Wimbledon semi finalist in 1970 and 1973. Lost to Ken Rosewall (Australia) and Jan Kodes (Cze). I remember watching both, I think Taylor was 2-1 up in sets against Kodes in a rain interrupted match. Kodes won in the final.
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He beat Rod Laver in the last 16 at Wimbledon in 1970, the year after Laver won his second Calendar Year Grand Slam (Laver is still the last man to do it). Taylor must've been some player.
 
nopigfansintown said:
He beat Rod Laver in the last 16 at Wimbledon in 1970, the year after Laver won his second Calendar Year Grand Slam (Laver is still the last man to do it). Taylor must've been some player.
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I dont remember him beating Rod Laver, I was probably at school when it was on tv and I dont think I was really aware about Laver being a tennis great until reading about him a few years later. Watching the Taylor v Rosewall match on tv was probably my first memory of watching Wimbledon. My dad wasnt really a tennis fan and he was explaining to me that Taylor was from Sheffield while we watched the semi-final.
 
Silent Blade said:
I dont remember him beating Rod Laver, I was probably at school when it was on tv and I dont think I was really aware about Laver being a tennis great until reading about him a few years later. Watching the Taylor v Rosewall match on tv was probably my first memory of watching Wimbledon. My dad wasnt really a tennis fan and he was explaining to me that Taylor was from Sheffield while we watched the semi-final.
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There's some pretty complex reasons why you probably weren't as aware of Laver (and I assume some other players). Laver was banned from Wimbledon (and a host of other tournaments) between 1963 and 1967. This was due to the split between the tours. Laver was one of the naughty boys that turned pro and went off chasing the money that otherwise wasn't available. A reprimand that was used to stop the non pro tour from disintegrating together was to ban players from the slams and Davis Cup. It's hard to imagine now but the money tournaments could be anywhere,not just those endorsed by the tennis establishment. Wimbledon had the prestige but not the biggest money.

Incidentally this is a reason why the post Sampras grand slam counting and never ending goat debates in the Federer, Djokovic, Nadal period are ahistorical - players chased money in those days. Sometimes players would miss grand slams because they had a better offer. The Australian Open wasn't really a hige deal until the 1990s.

In 1967 (during Laver et als ban period) there was actually two Wimbledons. The other slams had "pro" parallel events, but this was the one and only time it happened with Wimbledon. The BBC had the idea that it'd be a great idea way show off the invention off colour TV. I think it a pivotal moment precipitating the creation of "Open" tennis as this second Wimbledon was very successful and had a stacked field including Laver, Rosewall, Hoad, Gonzalez, Stolle and Gimeno. So these players didn't play in the June/July event but were in a separate draw on the same court in August.

By 1969 the Open era had started and Laver won the CYGS against the whole field including those he was previously banned from playing against.

Wimbledon Pro - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org en.m.wikipedia.org


 
Roger Taylor has got his autobiography out now. It’s subtitled ‘The man who saved Wimbledon’ - he refused to boycott Wimbledon apparently. He was interviewed on the BBC news a couple of weeks ago. Came across as a nice bloke. I saw he was in the crowd at Wimbledon yesterday.
 
I always took an interest in Roger Taylor as he was from Sheffield. I vaguely remember him beating Rod Laver (I would have been 10 years old) but I seem to remember him beating Bjorn Borg a few years later when Borg first played at Wimbledon. Gutted for him that he never won the singles title.

I understand he had a tennis academy in The Algarve but a few years ago while having a curry with Mrs BB at the Ranmoor Tandoori, who should be sat there having a meal on his own was Roger Taylor. Normally, I'd have gone over to him to say hello but I decided against doing so as I didn't want to intrude. I've read he'll be doing a book signing in Sheffield soon so I'd love to attend this.
 
Blackheath Blade said:
I always took an interest in Roger Taylor as he was from Sheffield. I vaguely remember him beating Rod Laver (I would have been 10 years old) but I seem to remember him beating Bjorn Borg a few years later when Borg first played at Wimbledon. Gutted for him that he never won the singles title.

I understand he had a tennis academy in The Algarve but a few years ago while having a curry with Mrs BB at the Ranmoor Tandoori, who should be sat there having a meal on his own was Roger Taylor. Normally, I'd have gone over to him to say hello but I decided against doing so as I didn't want to intrude. I've read he'll be doing a book signing in Sheffield soon so I'd love to attend this.
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Taylor did beat a young Borg at Bjorn's first Wimbledon in 1973. Taylor is famous for a remarkable bit of fair play in the fifth and final set in that match. He served an ace on match point. Borg disputed the call with the umpire claiming the ball went out. Despite the chair umpire declaring the match over in Taylor's favour, and the match having monumental importance to him, they played a let and replayed the point on Taylor's request.
 
Incidentally Lawn Tennis was played at Bramall Lane. I'd have to do further research but I know one of the oldest tennis clubs in England was founded there and that tennis tournaments with notable names featuring played at Bramall Lane - one of them being Wimbledon singles and doubles champion Ernest Renshaw. He was the brother of seven times men's singles Champion William Renshaw (a men's record until Federer got eight). Ernest Browne the Irish Wimbledon semi finalist also played at the Lane. I'm pretty sure there were more modern events.

Sheffield can trace it's tennis roots back to the mid 1870s before the first Wimbledon site opened for the first Championships in 1877. The first established clubs were early 1880s.
 
There was another aussie player around that time who never got the attention he deserved then or a lad called Ken rosewall brilliant player

c3b88a79-rosewall.webp
 
Aston max said:
There was another aussie player around that time who never got the attention he deserved then or a lad called Ken rosewall brilliant player

View attachment 215531
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He had remarkable longevity for a player at that time, making major finals from 1953-1974. He had the draw from hell at Wimbledon in 1974, aged 39, but still made the final succumbing to Connors in straights. He beat Tanner in rd 4 (who'd just defeated Ashe in round 3), Newcombe in the QF (number 1 seed, undefeated on grass since 1970), Stan Smith (4th seed, undefeated on grass since 1972, and Connors conqueror in the Nottingham final pre Wimbledon) in the semis.

I have to say it's very sad him never winning Wimbledon despite four finals. Again, this was largely down to the split tours and him being banned, his finals coming before his peak (54, 56) and well after (70, 74). He never played between 1956-68. If he played Wimbledon every year I think it obvious he'd have won multiple singles titles.

His contemporaries tended to win between 20 and 30 years of age, and then either be finished completely due to injury or burnout, or heavily declined. Laver, for example, won all his majors between 1960-69.

Laver and Rosewall met 165 times between 1963-77 with Laver leading the HTH 90-75. If you look at HTH records Laver seems to have the better over all his big rivals which adds to his mystique

The Aussies had a lot of brilliant players back then : Hoad, Laver, Rosewall, Newcombe, Emerson, Sedgman. The grand slam counting started when Sampras got close to Emerson re non pro tour slams. Emerson continued on the tour when the other top guys were banned and won 12, including six Aussie Opens before it was regarded as a serious event. The American media started seeing him as the guy for their man to 'overtake' to become the 'GOAT' despite Emersons contemporaries being seen as better, more accomplished players than him at the time, and guys like Borg (11 slams by his mid 20s, having never played the AO) being around.
 
My dad had me watching both when he was trying to get me to play, there was a really nice grass court in Todwick at the time .
Didn't sink in more than playing with friends, I was the fat kid until I was 13/14 always picked last.
Probably why I dislike bullies to this day .
 

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