Quins contenders
Last updated: 18th April 2008
Richards: Developing young talent at Harlequins
Harlequins is a great family club, I was at Leicester for a long, long time and they have lost that sense of belonging.
Dewi Morris met his old England mate Dean Richards for a pint or two to discuss the resurgence of a young and vibrant Harlequins side.
Under Richards, Harlequins are gunning for their best ever Premiership finish - currently third on the Premiership table, Richards and his young guns are aiming for at least a top four position.
"I would love us to be up there and it would be nice to win the Championship," said Richards on The Rugby Club.
"But at the same time we are a young side and inexperienced and sometimes when you get to these big games, well they are slightly different. But we have absolutely nothing to lose."
Harlequins started the season winning five games out of seven, but from November to January they only won one game out of twelve.
Facing one heck of a slump, Quins beat Worcester in February and they have lost only one game out of the last seven.
"We had a lot of hard games over that period and the conditions were pretty tough too," explained Richards.
"We could not get the rub of the green with the referee and things were just not going our way.
"In January we concentrated on doing particular things and are now doing reasonably well.
"We have a pretty small squad but I have a really good backroom staff that work very hard to get players on the field. I am very fortunate in that respect.
"Harlequins is a great family club, I was at Leicester for a long, long time and they have lost that sense of belonging.
"I think that Harlequins have a greater sense of belonging, a great affinity with their fans base than most clubs.
Back in the studio, Stuart Barnes has high praise for what Richards has achieved at Harlequins.
"We have all been talking about Martin Johnson and Brian Ashton, but Dean Richards has done something very important for his career," said Stuart Barnes.
"People said that when he was at Leicester he knew them inside out and they won all those titles. Then he went to Grenoble and he did not do so well and people where asking if he was a one trick pony.
"He joined Harlequins and he has a young team of English players and has created a vibrant team that does not just play in his image.
"They can be tight when they want to be and they can go wide. This is a team learning to play winning rugby and I am very impressed."
"He has done great things at Quins," agreed Dewi Morris. "He is finding it hard to keep a lid on it. Those youngsters really believe that they can make the top four."
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