Scottish Squash service award for Forres club stalwart Dave Taylor, who has played locally, nationally and internationally for almost 50 years and is still going strong
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FORRES Squash Club president Dave Taylor has smashed it by landing a long service national award for his chosen sport.
A stalwart of almost 50 years on courts across the north of Scotland, Taylor has been awarded this year’s services to squash by the Scottish Squash governing body.
In his club's submission for the award, he is described as a leading light and squash guru in the north, with his drive, enthusiasm and competitive spirit inspiring and encouraging decades of north players.
Taylor started playing in Forres in 1973 when the community centre opened with a squash court. Soon he was a regular for the Forres team in the Moray Firth League.
Within two years he was the leading first team player and a star in the league, and inside three years a North of Scotland champion, a title he went on to win seven times over the years.
One of his great strengths was always his superior fitness. He would often play two matches on Friday evening, two on Saturday morning then play a full football match – he starred for Mechanics, Lossiemouth and Caley in the Highland League. After football there would be another squash game in the evening and then two or three more on the Sunday.
In 1980 the courts were built in Forres with Taylor being an enthusiastic founder member and driving force in the committee of the club. He is the present chairman of the Forres club, a position he has held since 1985.
At the time it was an ambition of the Forres club to be the first north team to play in the Scottish national leagues.
This was at a time when you had to qualify by winning a tournament , a feat Forres finally achieved at the third time of trying and the team to their great pride qualified.
Taylor won the vital match at number 1 in their first national contest, winning a marathon match 3-2.
He organised and captained that team for many years playing at number one, where he enjoyed a high degree of success and the club travelled all over Scotland playing matches at the weekends.
Soon he was league secretary on the Moray Firth (MFSRA) committee, then president, a post that he held until around a decade ago when the league had grown to the Highlands and Islands Squash Association (HISA).
As president he decided that his goal should be to foster, encourage and develop the sport in the north.
He set about it with unbridled determination and showed an untiring effort and dedication to increase the level of participation in the sport and to radically increase the competitive level in the north.
This had enormous success, with the MFSRA and HISA having four senior leagues, two ladies' leagues and a junior one at one stage. There was usually a tournament every month ranging from Keith to Wick and Thurso. This was all down, in the main, to the effort of one man, Dave Taylor.
Apart from playing in the national leagues, Taylor did not pay that much attention to competition in the central belt, especially in the early years. However he did put all his effort into the masters leagues.
He played for Scotland in the over-35, over-40, over-50, over-55 and over-60 age brackets, and would be playing for his country at over-65 level this year if it wasn't for Covid-19 restrictions.
Taylor was even Scotland captain of the over-50s team in Dublin on one occasion.
He has been continuously coaching since the 1980s, not only in his own club, Forres, but Nairn and Kinloss. Initially he focused on adults but in the last decade has taken on juniors as well.
Now in his mid-sixties he has not shown any sign of winding down. He's still as keen and energetic as ever, still playing competitively and still remarkably fit.
Colleagues have spoken to Taylor about his long service to squash and he said he has thoroughly enjoyed playing and competing iover the years, but his greatest enjoyment is all the people and friends he has met over the years.
The conclusion of his submission to Scottish Squash read: "We can think of no other person in Scotland who has given more to squash over such a long period and is more deserving of the award for services to the sport than David Taylor."
