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Maidstone United manager Jay Saunders' chance meeting with Cambridge United captain leads to signing of Bobby-Joe Taylor

00:01, 19 June 2015

A chance meeting abroad led to one of three new midfield arrivals at Maidstone United.

Stones boss Jay Saunders signed Bobby-Joe Taylor from Cambridge United after bumping into the League 2 club’s captain Ian Miller while on holiday in Kos.

Miller alerted Saunders to the 20-year-old’s availability and the Maidstone boss moved just in time.

Saunders, who has also signed Joe Healy from Welling and Eastbourne Borough’s Simon Johnson, said: “I got chatting to Ian Miller by the pool and he said Bobby had turned down a new contract at Cambridge, that he only lived in Ashford and did I want a chat with him.

“I’d seen him a few times last season and Ian gave me his number.

“He was about to sign for another club but he agreed to meet me on Saturday morning and we did a deal. ”

Bobby-Joe Taylor, one of three new signings made by Maidstone
Bobby-Joe Taylor, one of three new signings made by Maidstone

Welling midfielder Healy, 28, was one of United’s main targets after winning promotion to National League South – but they didn’t expect to get him.

Saunders said: “Joe’s quality – he was at the top of our list. I rung him a couple of weeks ago and he said he’d be re-signing for Welling but he then got in touch with Jamie Coyle (Stones player-coach) and said that actually he was being released."

Johnson, 24, arrives at Maidstone after six seasons in the first team at Eastbourne Borough.

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