Long-serving defender Taylor joins Carshalton after eight seasons over two spells at Champion Hill.

Fan favourite defender Quade Taylor has left the Hamlet, bringing an end to his eight-season tenure with the club over two spells.

Quade has made 238 appearances for the club, scoring 11 goals, and played an important role in our promotion-winning season in 2018. He departs to join our soon-to-be Isthmian League rivals Carshalton Athletic, where our former player Peter Adeniyi has just returned to as manager. Quade was also the only player to appear in all five of our National League South seasons.

The 29-year-old first made his debut back in the autumn of 2010, coming through the academy to appear as a 16-year-old. After 13 appearances that season, Crystal Palace came calling for him.

Following spells at Welling United (loan), Bolton Wanderers, Dagenham & Redbridge (loan) and Braintree Town, Quade re-joined the Hamlet in 2016. Despite struggling for game time during the 2016-17 season, he grabbed his first goal for the club, netting the first goal in our FA Trophy Quarter-Final draw with Macclesfield Town, as we came back from 2-0 down to earn a replay.

The following season saw Quade make his most appearances during a campaign with 43, playing a major role in defence as the club earned promotion to the National League South through the play-offs. Despite playing the majority of games that season, he did not appear in either play-off match with Leiston and Hendon.

During our first year at Step 2, Quade often filled in as captain during the second half of the campaign when Magnus Okuonghae was injured, helping the side to climb away from any threat of relegation. He would also rediscover his goalscoring touch the following season, scoring in consecutive games against Bognor Regis Town and Chippenham Town after two and a half years without a goal.

When the league began again in earnest after the Covid-19 pandemic, Quade enjoyed his best season in front of goal, scoring five times during 2021-22. Three of those goals came in the space of six league games, against Chelmsford City, Braintree and Bath City, and he also netted the first brace of his career, that coming against Welling United in the spring of 2022.

Despite having three different managers last year, Quade remained an important member of the squad for each of them, reaching the 40-appearance mark for the second time in his Hamlet career, scoring one final goal, again at former club Braintree. His final game was the 0-0 draw with Concord Rangers in April.

A humble, polite and hardworking person, who never gave less than his all for the Hamlet badge, Quade departs as one of the most popular figures to have played for us over the last decade, and everyone at the club would like to thank him for his services, and wish him the very best at Colston Avenue.