Richards rues 'incredibly loyal servant' not getting England cap

Newcastle boss Dean Richards has outlined his disappointment over how the long-serving Will Welch has never been capped by England. The director of rugby this week held his final midweek media briefing in charge at the Falcons and among his reflections on his decade in charge at Kingston Park was his bemusement that some players haven’t had the international recognition he feels they deserve. 

Things are looking up in recent times for hooker George McGuigan as he experienced his first England training squad call-up last month when included at the three-day gathering in London. However, the 32-year-old Welch was also named by Richards as someone he reckons deserved a shot some years ago when he was firing at his best for Newcastle.

The 32-year-old is just completing his 14th season involved with the Newcastle first-team but aside from selection in 2010 with the England U20s, the back-rower hasn’t been able to make the jump into the Test game arena.

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Asked to pick the players whose efforts at a representative level most pleased him in helping to put rugby in Newcastle on the map, Richards turned the query on its head and instead spoke about the near-misses that weigh on his mind more.   

“It would be wrong to name anybody per se,” he said. “There are boys you are disappointed with who haven’t been recognised.

“I was delighted that Jamie Blamire got an England cap, I was also disappointed that George hasn’t and I also think that Will Welch has been an incredibly loyal servant to the team over the years and three or four years ago probably was very close to getting a cap as well because of the level that he played at. So guys like that you would be a little more disappointed for rather than actually over-elated for the other guys.”

Richards bows out on Saturday as director of rugby after the Newcastle game at Northampton, paving the way for Dave Walder to step up from within. What does he look back on with most pride? “It’s probably all the trophies I have won,” he quipped, cracking a joke at his own expense. “You ask a lot of directors of rugby and very few would have the opportunity to say it’s all the trophies and cups that we have won. There would probably be three or four but that is about it over a ten-year period.

“What has pleased me over the time I have been here was the way we have developed a number of individuals not just to play international rugby and stay with us but also to play international rugby at other clubs as well such as the Chris Harris’ of this world who have gone on to develop into what we consider world-class players.

“Other small things are games like Toulon away when nobody gave us a chance of winning and we went over there and turned them over in their own backyard. At the time I don’t think any other English team had beaten them away from home. So games like that and victories in games that people didn’t expect us to win.”

What will Richards miss most? “The camaraderie and just being around the lads in the office on a daily basis. The team spirit has been fantastic this year. It’s probably my fault in terms of recruitment but that’s life,” he said, before getting asked what he thinks the Newcastle office will most miss about him. 

“Absolutely f*** all. I’m famous for making my mackerel on toast in the office and they hate the smell of mackerel in the office, so they will miss that more than anything. It’s a breakfast thing.

“There is not much that I’ll miss the least. With every good bit, there is a bad bit and they sort of complement each other. You don’t appreciate the good times without the bad times. It’s the whole package that I’ll miss. I don’t think there’s one thing I will miss more than the other.”