Richardson was born in Barking.[1] He worked as a meat-porter at Smithfield Market[2] and played football part-time before his performances with Dagenham & Redbridge in the Conference earned him a £60,000 move to Birmingham City, newly promoted to the Football League First Division (the second tier of English football), in the 1995 close season.[3] Dagenham teammate Jason Broom described him as "Never the most gifted player in the world but was a ferocious tackler. He used to get from box to box and scored lots of goals mainly through his excellence in the air."[4] He made his debut in the Football League on 8 October 1995, as a substitute replacing Jonathan Hunt in a 2–0 win at home to Southend United.[5] Only three months later Richardson joined Notts County on loan.[1] Though he returned to Birmingham and made three more first-team appearances,[5] including a place in the starting eleven for the second leg of the League Cup semi-final against Leeds United,[6] Richardson joined Notts County on a permanent basis in March 1996 for a fee of £150,000.[7]
Notts County
In the 1997–98 season, Richardson was part of Sam Allardyce's Notts County team which won the Division Three title by a record margin and at a record early date.[8] A £350,000 move to Wimbledon foundered on a failed medical, much to the delight of County's manager Jocky Scott.[9][10] With the club in financial difficulties, Richardson took a pay cut to remain at County because his family were settled in the area.[11] His contract expired at the end of the 2002–03 season; with the club in administration and subject to a transfer embargo, it was not until August 2003 that the Football League gave them permission to offer Richardson monthly terms.[12] Richardson said that "the problems never influenced the players on the pitch – only during every other moment when they weren't playing."[13]
Richardson was appointed caretakerplayer-manager in November 2004 after the departure of Gary Mills,[14] though his injured knee restricted him to a largely managerial role.[15] He successfully led the team away from relegation and to the Third Round of the FA Cup,[16] but was replaced as manager by Gudjon Thordarson at the end of the season.[8] Despite his limited playing appearances in the 2004–05 season, Richardson was voted County's Player of the Year for the second consecutive year,[17] and was selected as League Two's "Unsung Hero" in BBC Sport's alternative awards list.[18] After his playing contract expired in June 2005, he was given a monthly contract to allow him time to prove his fitness; despite playing in two reserve games, the club's view was "the knee has not made a sufficient recovery for the acquired [sic] level of professional football", and Richardson was released.[9] The player took legal advice and consulted the Professional Footballers' Association,[19] but after trials with Peterborough United and Burton Albion, he decided to retire as a player and to accept the offer of a testimonial match and a coaching role with the club's Football in the Community programme.[16]
As of 2010, Richardson was working as Activity Manager for Notts County's Football in the Community programme,[20] which won the League Two Best Community Initiative Award at the 2008 Football League Awards ceremony for a project designed to use football to approach the improvement of self-esteem and life skills of adult males with mental health issues.[21]
References
^ abcdHugman, Barry J, ed. (2005). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2005/2006. Queen Anne Press. p. 343. ISBN978-1-85291-662-6.
^Southon, Hugh (26 May 1996). "County's big steak". Sunday Mirror. p. 77. Retrieved 21 January 2014 – via NewsBank.