Winning End To Season Adds Rosier Hue To Big Picture

'It was very good to end with a win, particularly for the supporters themselves. The atmosphere has been very good throughout the season considering the results,' he said.

'Today it was special and we wanted to focus in and see if we could get a win. I thought Coventry had a lot of possession, but, at the end of the day, I thought we shaded it for chances.'

The Watford boss was particularly pleased with the display by Tommy Smith and Darren Ward.

'I like to think, and only time will tell, that we have found a forward player and I would like to think we have probably found a centre half. We have the little boy at the front and the big boy at the back. I think we have a couple of boys who will hopefully help us to get back into the Premiership and, if not, go on and do well elsewhere,' he said.

'I thought Tommy Smith was first class today but I am very, very pleased with what I have seen of Darren Ward. I know, when I first came to the club and saw him at 17, I felt we have got a player here. But the broken leg certainly set him back. We were beginning to get very concerned about him.

'But the three month's loan, as he has said himself, did him so much good. We have seen such a difference in him. He's assured, he's strong and keeps on his feet. He made a great block there, right at the end, when he did go to ground but we are seeing him staying on his feet far more. I was very happy with him.'

He then returned to the theme of Watford having done well if they regularly commute between the Premiership and the First Division.

'Five years ago, I was in charge of Wolves who had beaten Bolton 2-1 in the play-offs. They beat us in the second leg and went up. The following year they were relegated and the year after that they were promoted,' he pointed out.

'Then the following year they were relegated and they are now in the play-offs for a second successive season. Never mind about their cup success, I see that as a tremendous achievement.

'As much as you have been in the Premiership, and people say you should bounce straight back up, I think we happen to leave the Premiership in a far stronger position than we entered it.

'If we happened to get back into the Premiership, we would be far better prepared and far stronger than we were this season.

'So imitating Bolton would be a tremendous achievement for a club of Watford's size.'

Taylor reflected on Wimbledon's fall from the top flight and stressed that one should not lose sight of the tremendous achievement over the last 25 years for a club that was non-league.

'You need to change the culture and philosophy of a club and when you are in the Premiership for 14 seasons, as Wimbledon have been, you can achieve that. When Watford were last in the top division, they stayed in for six years, which is not long enough to do that.

'It may seem a long time but it was only the sixth season in the top division. Our job is to make sure that we have the structure in place so that if we get back into the Premiership, the chances are we will not come straight down after one season.

'For that reason I have great, great admiration for what Bradford have achieved,' he added.

TAYLOR pointed out that the club is involved in the community and that is part of the reason why the fans have reacted so well on the final day, despite knowing the club is going to be relegated for a long time.

'When I first came back in 1996, I thought we were just existing on the reputation of being a family club. Some of the money we have got from being a Premiership club, we have worked to get back into the community. That is one of the advantages we have over the big clubs and it would be a crying shame if people do not see there is a role for a football club in that way.

'People do relate very strongly with their club and you need to have been here to see that work.'

A note of concern was struck by one reporter who continued to harp on the fact the First Division contains big and rich clubs: like Blackburn, bigger and richer than Watford.

'But what have Blackburn done?' Taylor retorted. 'We are bringing in our own players, producing them like Robinson, Page, Johnson, Perpetuini, Smith, Ward and Easton.

'We are investing in the Academy. A lot of top clubs are bringing foreign boys into their Academies and I am not sure that was what the Academy intention was, but it will give us a better chance because we will take in the English boys.

'We will produce players who will have a Watford ethos about them; hopefully, they will care about the club and hopefully take it forward and, if they are too good for us, they will go somewhere else. We must not start to think we can go in and compete at all levels with the big clubs. You can't, unless someone comes in and says here's £50m and you'll get the same next year as well.

'Then you have to get your judgment right because it can still go wrong.'

THE penalty saga was touched upon later in the after-match discussions.

'I have not been in to see the referee about it but my view is that you either give a penalty and send the goalkeeper off or you give a penalty and keep him on or you recognise that the Watford player has cheated and you caution him,' said the manager.

'But he did neither. You leave everybody very, very confused. I was talking with Gordon Strachan by the dug-out and the view was that had he cautioned Heidar for cheating, I might not have agreed with it but I would have had to accept it was his view. As it is, he has given no view.

'That was all I was saying to Gordon.'

Asked about the performance by Bonnot, Taylor said he came on to his game more, the longer the game goes on because he has a high fitness level.

'I thought Coventry had a reasonable amount of possession at the start of the second half but we had the most chances.

'Playing with that formation makes us a little bit stronger but you have to know how to play it.

'Tommy Mooney has the first full 90 minutes and he has to do some work in his close season. You would expect him to be quite tired.'