Keeper Stephen Bywater had no hesitation in joining Gillingham when Peter Taylor made an enquiry.

Bywater’s good friend Robbie Savage backed the move and other high-profile voices had previously spoken highly of the Gills boss.

It left Bywater in no doubt that swapping the bench at Championship Millwall for first team football at Priestfield was the right move.

He said: “When the manager, Peter Taylor, rang me up I felt it was a fantastic opportunity to work with someone who has such a good reputation.

“Everyone I speak to speaks highly of him and even my close friend Robbie Savage has worked with him. He was at Leicester with him and said he was a good gaffer.

“You don’t turn down opportunities when people of that calibre ring and say, ‘would you like to come and play?’”

Taylor has worked with other high-profile footballers, many during his time as England under-21 boss and as caretaker national boss in 2000.

Bywater won six under-21 caps for England under Howard Wilkinson and David Platt.

The word back then was also that Taylor was a man to be respected.

“The likes of Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand, who worked under his team at under-21, would say what a good time they had working with him,” said Bywater.

“The gaffer is organised, he speaks to people and that’s all you can ask for.”

Bywater is on loan with the Gills until January 3.

Full story in Friday's Medway Messenger