Re: Hampshire v Williams : Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:38 am
I can't get on board with an attitude that makes you happy to report back that a young player is faltering, just to prove yourself right - it's churlish at best.Richardson is, without a doubt, a very talented young player - the why's and wherefore's of what he does this season are between him and his coach, but I have no doubt that he'll be back in the Saints lineup and will have a great career. It could be argued that they're actually managing him very well by letting him develop out of the spotlight for a while - because there are plenty of examples of it being done the other way, and going badly wrong.
Bigger picture - we have a severe shortage of these types of players in the UK, because the junior game is a) like the Wild West b) places no significant value on a small lad with silky skills and c) is run by enthusiastic dads with no real coaching pedigree; by the time a kid is spotted and starts training with a pro academy, there's a lot of uncoaching to do before the actual coaching can begin.