Doncaster Rovers: Grant McCann will offer opportunity to 'special talent' Paul Taylor

Grant McCann hopes he can get 'special talent' Paul Taylor fit and firing for Doncaster Rovers.
Paul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough UnitedPaul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough United
Paul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough United

Former Bradford City and Ipswich Town forward Taylor featured as a trialist for Rovers in Tuesday night's 5-0 friendly win over Frickley Athletic.

McCann played alongside Taylor for Peterborough United before his £1.5m move to Ipswich and then re-signed him for Posh once he became manager.

Paul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough UnitedPaul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough United
Paul Taylor during his second spell with Peterborough United
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And he will be giving the 30-year-old ample opportunity to earn himself a deal with Rovers over the next fortnight.

"He'll be staying around," McCann said.

"He's a great lad and the boys have bought into him already.

"A few of the lads were surprised to see how good he was yesterday in training.

"It's different in a game. Game time is different and he needs a lot of that.

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"He needs to get fit, he needs a lot of game time but when he is fit, he's a special talent."

Taylor scored six goals in 33 appearances for Bradford last season before leaving the club for personal reasons in April.

A lively forward with an eye for goal - and spectacular strikes - he has endured issues off the pitch and was handed a suspended jail sentence for assaulting a pub doorman during his time at Ipswich.

McCann says Taylor has proven himself at both League One and Championship level and could be a major player for Rovers if they can get him in the right condition.

"Tayls is someone I know really, really well," McCann said.

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"He got his move to Ipswich and he's had some problems off the pitch.

"But the lad has settled down now, he's got two kids.

"I played with him. I brought him to Peterborough and when he left I gave him a really good recommendation to Stuart McCall at Bradford.

"He was outstanding for them last year. I think he got one in three in terms of the games he played.

"He's an enigma. He can create something out of nothing.

"He's got great ability. We probably didn't see too much of it tonight but that was his first game in three or four months because he left Bradford when Stuart left.

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"He;s a lad that if we get fit then he can be anything in this league and he has done in this league and in the Champinship.

"We'll see how he goes over the next couple of weeks and we'll take it from there."

"I know what he can do," he added.

"I know everything about Tayls.

"I managed him at Peterborough and he was excellent for us even though he didn't get enough goals - he'll probably tell you that himself.

"He delivered for Bradford last year and some of the goals he scored for them last year were outstanding.

"Again, we'll monitor him over the next week to ten days and see how he is and we are after that."