Early career Taylor started his career at
Redditch United, joining as a 19-year-old in May 2004. He went on to play in the
Southern League with
Solihull Borough in
2004–05 and
Evesham United in
2005–06. He was
relegated in both seasons. He then played in the
Conference North for
Redditch United in
2006–07 and
Nuneaton Borough in
2007–08, where he was a consistently good performer in the division. He signed with Nuneaton on non-
contract terms in February 2008. He made his debut as a
substitute in a 1–0 win over
Alfreton Town at
Liberty Way on 1 March. He went on to make eight appearances for "Boro", scoring goals against
Kettering Town and
Hucknall Town.
Manager Kevin Wilkin said that "Rob is competent and a good signing". Taylor went on to become a full-time professional but said "if it doesn't work out then I'd be happy to stay on with Nuneaton next season".
Port Vale Despite several trials at
English Football League clubs, he chose to put his education first and complete a degree at the
University of Worcester. After a successful trial with
Port Vale, where he scored in a
reserve team outing, manager
Lee Sinnott signed him up on a two-year deal in readiness for the
2008–09 season. He scored on his Vale debut in a 3–1 victory against
Luton Town. When Sinnott's replacement
Dean Glover took charge of the club, Taylor found himself out of contention and when Glover himself was removed Taylor stated his ambitions to earn himself a first-team place under fresh management. During the start of the
2009–10 season, under new manager
Micky Adams, Taylor found himself in the first-team and a fan favourite. He played in the
League Cup "
Sheffield double" defeats of both
Championship sides, also scoring past
Wednesday. In the following league game against
Hereford United he scored a superb goal, that would later win him the club's Goal of the Season award. In August he set himself a target of ten goals for the season. Under Adams, Taylor was utilized in an attacking role, rather than his original role as left-back/left midfielder. He was
transfer listed in late September, along with the entire Port Vale squad, after manager
Micky Adams saw his team slip to a third consecutive defeat. On 28 December 2009 he scored his sixth of the season at
Grimsby Town's
Blundell Park, before getting his second bookable offence, earning him the first
sending off of his professional career. To his surprise and delight, his good form earned him a contract extension in January 2010 that tied him to the "Vale" until the summer of 2012. Adams said that he gave Taylor the contract to avoid other clubs making attempts to tempt him away from
Vale Park. Taylor found himself in the treatment room after tearing his hamstring in only his second start of the
2010–11 campaign. After recovering earlier than expected he aimed to regain his first-team place. On 8 January he scored a brace past Championship side
Burnley in Vale's 4–2
FA Cup defeat at
Turf Moor. These would be two of only three goals that season. However, he ended the campaign with 41 appearances to his name. He started the
2011–12 season on the bench. After he scored in his first start of the season, a
Football League Trophy tie with
Tranmere Rovers, he cemented his first-team place with a brace against
Bradford City in the league. However, he picked up an
Achilles injury in February that left him unfit to play. He finished the season with three goals in 34 appearances and agreed to sign a new two-year deal with the club in May 2012. He missed all of the
2012–13 pre-season training with a
calf injury. Vale secured
promotion with a third-place finish at the end of the season, with Taylor making 32 appearances. Taylor missed the whole of
2013–14 pre-season after damaging his Achilles tendon, and was out of training for close to five months. He marked his first appearance of the season on 23 November with a goal in a 2–1 victory over local rivals
Crewe Alexandra at
Gresty Road. He made a further three appearances before missing six weeks from mid-December onwards with a thigh injury. He was released by the club in the summer, ending a six-year stay at Vale Park.
Mansfield Town Taylor signed with League Two club
Mansfield Town in August 2014 after impressing manager
Paul Cox on trial. He played 19 games in the first half of the
2014–15 campaign, but new boss
Adam Murray said Taylor had begun looking for a new club to be closer to his pregnant wife.
Tranmere Rovers Taylor signed for League Two side
Tranmere Rovers in January 2015 after being signed for an undisclosed fee by manager
Micky Adams, who had coached him at Port Vale. He made 15 appearances for Rovers as the club dropped out of the Football League at the end of the
2014–15 season, and was not offered a new contract by new manager
Gary Brabin.
Kidderminster Harriers In August 2015, Taylor joined
Kidderminster Harriers of the
National League on a non-contract basis after a successful trial during pre-season. An ankle injury prevented him from playing however, and he left
Aggborough in December. ==Style of play==