JR In Familiar Inside-Track Role

John Richards has used a first post-lockdown visit to Australia to make a return to his writing days of four and five decades ago.

Following more than one cancelled trip during the covid years, Richards and wife Pam have finally been able to spend some quality time in the Melbourne area and around the Great Barrier Reef with eldest daughter Kim and her family.

But he also squeezed in an hour or two at the keyboard to turn the clock back to when he was the Sporting Star’s guest contributor from inside the Wolves dressing room.

The record-breaking striker has recently been invited by the nostalgia magazine Backpass to provide a player-by-player low-down on the men who beat Manchester City in the 1974 League Cup final and was more than happy to step into the role.

“So much has been said and written on the game itself that it is difficult to come up with anything too original about it now,” he said. “But providing 50 words or so of more general interest on each of my team-mates was a fun exercise.

“I know the people at the Star used to like to see some humour in my pieces all those years ago and I have tried to keep that same balance with this article.

“I have to remember that the magazine is read by a lot of fans from outside this area who won’t be Wolves supporters. So a certain amount of factual information was required to remind them where the lads came from and maybe where they went afterwards.

“Some brilliant friendships were formed in that dressing room and so many of the squad remain in close contact now. We always have fun together when we meet at social gatherings and I think they would be disappointed if there was no mickey-taking at all!”

Alongside Richards’ entertaining contribution, the outstanding magazine will also contain a detailed look at the 1973-74 League Cup journey by Wolves Heroes’ other co-owner, David Instone.

The publication is some 15 years and 80 issues old and has recently had an upgrade and increase in paging. It costs £5.90 and details on how to purchase can be obtained by clicking on the photo of the man himself on the right hand side of this page.

For Richards, who also compiled a Postcard From Madeira column for the Star after leaving Wolves in the first half of the 1980s, there is significance in the identity of the last two away sides at Molineux this season.

Manchester City, against whom he rifled the late winner in the League Cup final 48 years ago, were in town in midweek and today’s visitors are Norwich, who suffered when he scored a goal in both legs of a tight semi-final in the same staging of the competition.

In another throwback to the club’s League Cup glory days, Richards played golf this week with 1980 finalist Willie Carr at Perton Park.