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Taggart's horror start in London finally turning into goals

19th February, 2015
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Adam Taggart for the Socceroos. (AAP Image/Lukas Coch)
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19th February, 2015
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Oxford Street is a nightmare when London clocks off work on a weekday afternoon. Yet down a side alley, away from the hustle and bustle, Adam Taggart sits comfortably in the corner of a tiny speakeasy, relaxed and sipping on an espresso after a day at the office.

It’s mid-January and the 21-year-old has just completed his first pain-free training session with Fulham FC. Taggart’s gone through a tough introduction to English football, one where he’s spent more time on the treatment table than out on the pitch.

As rain drizzles down on cobbled pavements outside, it’s a contrasting set of circumstances compared to twelve months ago, when Taggart burst onto the Australian football scene in the sunny beachside city of Newcastle.

The rookie striker ended the 2013-14 A-League campaign with the golden boot, scoring 16 goals in 25 games, claiming the young footballer of the year gong and earning a place in Ange Postecoglou’s Socceroos squad for the Brazil World Cup.

As Taggart reminisces on his breakthrough season he fiddles with a skull and crossbones ring on his right hand, deep in thought about his rapid progression from bit-part player at Perth Glory to back-up striker for Tim Cahill on the world stage.

“I’ve said it before but it was probably the best six months of my life,” he says.

“Everything I wanted to complete within that short timeframe I did, and coming to Fulham was obviously part of that – going overseas to a European club. The World Cup was just a surreal experience.”

Taggart’s move to London followed soon after Brazil, where the forward made two appearances, but instead of grasping the chance to stake a claim in English football, his career undeniably plateaued.

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Troublesome injuries prevented him from training, a groin injury that was forecast to keep him out for weeks turning into months. An early return in late November proved too soon, and another tear showed up in a follow-up scan. For an ambitious youngster, stuck in the dark depressing depths of an English winter, it hasn’t been a smooth transition.

“Since I came here it’s not necessarily been downhill, but everything’s been put to a halt,” he says.

“When I was first injured I never thought it would take this long. I was going crazy to be honest.

“The Asian Cup was a massive motivation, and it was disappointing to miss that. When I wasn’t going to be fully right for that, that was the hardest point.”

***

While the Socceroos were busy defeating the likes of China and South Korea on their way to being crowned champions of Asia, Taggart was gearing towards a long-awaited comeback.

He has exploded for Fulham’s Under-21s side, scoring four goals in as many appearances. The first, a neat finish against Everton’s reserves from a blistering counter-attack, drew a look to the sky from Taggart as the demons in his head cascaded away.

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Any doubts that his predatory instincts may have diminished were quickly dismissed.

“It had been a long time, it was a really good feeling to put the ball in the back of the net again,” Taggart says.

“I feel happy to be back. It’s a strange feeling because you’re used to going in to training with pain, and finally you’re waking up and feeling alright.”

He followed that debut strike with two equally impressive efforts against Manchester United and West Ham reserves, before scoring the winner in a pulsating 4-3 victory over Chelsea Under-21s in the Premier League International Cup on Thursday night.

Back to showing off the composure in front of goal that had elevated him to international honours last June, Taggart is determined to regain his place in the Socceroos set-up. Postecoglou takes the national side to Germany in March, but for the moment Taggart’s sights are firmly geared towards first team honours with Fulham.

The club has struggled to bounce back from relegation to the Championship from the English Premier League, and their erratic manager Felix Magath was sacked following six defeats in the opening seven matches of the season.

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Academy coach Kit Symons took over the reigns, initiating a mini-revival before results fell back to previous lows. Four defeats in the last five has the Cottagers lying more than 20 points from a playoff spot, and just five from the relegation mire.

It’s a familiar narrative for young professional footballers. Breakout season results in a dream transfer before injury and managerial upheaval stems progress and an uphill battle to catch up on lost time ensues. But many Fulham fans have been following Taggart’s progression closely, and are vociferously calling for his inclusion in the senior squad.

“That’s the next step,” Taggart says, “I want to be pushing for a spot in the first team and playing senior games where the results actually matter.

“Now that we’re going through this slump it’s definitely a motivation. I’m paid to score goals and that’s what I want to do. If we’re up 5-0 I’m still trying to score as many as I can. That’s the only thought in my head when I’m on the pitch.

“It’s up to Kit now, but I’ve just got to continue knocking on his door.”

***

Decked out in rolled up jeans, boat shoes – sans socks – and sporting a stylish 1920s slicked back hairdo, Taggart slips seamlessly into the trendy London crowd. As he reflects on his time at Fulham, with snippets of an English accent already creeping in, his answers are pensive and delivered crisply.

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Despite leaving Australia as the league’s top goalscorer, and fresh from lining up alongside the likes of Andreas Iniesta and David Villa, Taggart doesn’t conjure up false realities of where he lies in his career.

“It was just another learning curve,” he says of his World Cup experience.

“I was never too far ahead of myself and I never necessarily thought I should be at the World Cup. I went into camps with an open mind that this was about taking the next step.

“But at the same time you have to believe in yourself to be a professional footballer.”

His willingness to learn is best evidenced as he recounts his time at Fulham under the unconventional and often derided Magath.

The German’s reputation as a disciplinarian with eccentric ideas on rehab is well known, ranging from slapping alcohol-soaked cheese on injured thighs to running players into the ground and hiding their water bottles. It’s a trait that has seen him nicknamed ‘The Torturer’ in his native country.

Taggart isn’t too interested in bagging out his former boss, however, as some of his teammates have done in the past. At first his stoic defence of Magath exudes media training paying off, but it’s more a demonstration of his positive attitude towards football.

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“Felix was a very challenging manager to have,” he grins, well aware of the notorious stories surrounding his old boss.

“I didn’t personally have any cheese on the thigh, but there were a lot of different methods that he was pretty keen on in terms of injuries and rehab. A lot of them are little things that I still do now.

“I learned a lot from him, he builds your character. And in the early days it’s really important to continue learning.

“If you’re not openminded then it’s a complete waste of time. I think it’s important to take everything you can from every different manager.”

Just like his answers, Taggart’s move to Fulham was a calculated call too. Despite offers from other European leagues, Taggart felt that England was the best place to hone his skills, where ruthless and pacy strikers are highly valued.

“I didn’t want to make a move where I wasn’t going to play, but I also didn’t want to make a move where I was guaranteed to play,” he explains.

“Both ways contradict your development. I wanted to wait for the right move, and Fulham fit all the right criteria.”

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Newcastle Jets striker Adam Taggart celebrates with captain Ruben Zadkovich

Living in Clapham Junction, just down the road from Fulham, Taggart is still never too far from his roots. As well as the thousands of Aussie expats holing up in the trendy south-west London suburb, Taggart can call on an old childhood friend to keep him grounded.

Ryan Williams is also on the books at Fulham, and the two players once called the same neighbourhood home in the suburbs of Perth. Their mums used to take turns driving the youngsters to training for ECU Joondalup.

It’s the reminder of those humble beginnings, as well as his fond memories of his time in Newcastle, that stick with him on his journey to reaching the top of the football pyramid.

While affectionately referring to Newcastle as “a bubble you have to escape sometimes”, which would resonate with any young Novocastrian, he is quick to heap praise on a city that nurtured his talents, as well as old manager Gary van Egmond.

“I was in an extremely good place,” Taggart says.

“Gary believed in me and gave me my chance, and the way he wanted to improve individuals was top quality. A lot of credit has to go to Newcastle in general too, the people and the fans were fantastic, the club were fantastic. And I still have a lot of friends there.”

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“Now I’ve gone to the extreme opposite. Newcastle is a small city with a very close community, and now you go to London where you never know who you’re talking to.”

Taggart is embracing the anonymity of England’s capital, thriving on the multicultural atmosphere and bulging population, which he feels will push him higher up the football ladder.

“Every single day you’ve got to be on your toes, that’s exactly what you want,” he says.

“It’s a competitive place, and it brings you up that you need to keep moving forward and developing to be the best you can.”

Down in the speakeasy, just off Oxford Street, Taggart is able to momentarily escape the helter-skelter lifestyle for a few moments. But as he emerges back into the busy London streets, the temperature gauge creeping towards zero, he doesn’t even let out a shiver.

“I love the cold,” he says.

Comfortable in his new environment, Taggart’s determination in the face of a horror six months off the pitch is admirable, and you get the feeling that it’s just a matter of when, not if, Taggart can squeeze his way into Fulham’s first squad. With the club struggling to win points since Christmas, he could soon have that chance to endear himself to both management and fans.

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After that, the Socceroos await, with the team crying out for someone to step into Cahill’s boots when he decides to retire. Taggart may be down the pecking order after his stint on the sidelines, but if he keeps banging in goals then it won’t be long before he pulls on the green and gold again either.

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