Obituary

Frances Taylor, wife of Bill Taylor, passed away on 4th April 2010.

Frances’ cremation was held at Ruislip Crematorium on Friday 16 April , 2010 at 1.45pm.

Valedictory

I was honoured when Bill asked me to say a few words today about Frances’s association with the club, as she provides an enduring exemplar of the loyal and willing volunteer which all amateur organisations need to thrive. It is, of course, impossible to do justice to her contribution without mentioning Bill, himself also an extraordinary servant of the club, for they were an effective team in this as in so many other ways.

I always saw them as the Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy of Ealing Rugby Club. A beautiful and feisty woman, strong but with a smile which could melt snow, partnered by a pocket sized dynamo, with silver hair and silver tongue, always up for a debate.

And Frances was no mean debater herself. She could hold her own on any subject, and was often more than a match for her husband. A real achievement, for, as we all know, the fluency he has in argument, refined in the service of his fellow workers, can seldom be staunched even if the other party raises his arms in surrender and mutely agrees.

The only time I have seen him meet his match - other than with Frances - was when driving him to an away game at Barking earlier this season, and he took issue with my satnav over the route. The disembodied bossy lady pressed on regardless, and, on this occasion, even Bill had reluctantly to concede defeat.

The Taylors first became involved with the club in the early Eighties when they came down to Berkeley Fields to watch their son, Paul, play in what was then known as Dave Inwood’s Colts. Before long Bill’s organizational skills were harnessed to the needs of the boys on the field of play, and Frances was providing food in the kitchen to revive them after the game.

She served many generations of players in this valuable role and became a much respected member of the club in her own right. So respected, indeed, that she became one of only three Honorary Members and was later awarded a Vice Presidency. That is a much prized honour in our club which cannot be purchased, and is only given for significant service normally over a considerable period.

In the course of time Dave Inwood’s Colts became Bill Taylor’s Colts, and we would all acknowledge how much Frances contributed to that accolade. Her catering achievements even extended to a renowned Ealing Colts Sevens Tournament, which ran for many years. As a sponsor of it, I still cherish the memory of presenting an eighteen year old Laurence Dallaglio of Wasps with the winner’s trophy twenty years ago.

It is fitting to note, as we remember her here this afternoon, that the colts she looked after so well - now grown men, many with families of their own - have a reunion arranged at the club tomorrow.
I am sure they will mark that occasion with their own tributes to a lady whose selfless service helped put them on track for a good and useful life.

For my own part, she was especially supportive to me at that time, in an experience which showed me how much a good rugby club can be a real community. Whilst I was serving as chairman of the club’s executive committee, my wife was seriously ill in hospital for many months, and I had the care of two children under five - one a babe in arms.

Frances was one of several women who generously helped to look after my children at the club on Saturday afternoons, giving me some respite from my domestic duties. I can see another here today. For that kindness freely given, and much else, I shall always remember her with fondness.

In the same way, each person here will surely have a personal memory of her to treasure, and so she will live on for ever in our hearts, enriching our lives for the future as she did so much in the past.

Rhidian Jones