Richard ready to Stear Town out of danger

RICHARD STEARMAN tasted a memorable Premier League promotion with Sheffield United.

But now the defender, 32, is trying desperately to help Huddersfield avoid Championship relegation.

The troubled Terriers are in danger of suffering a second successive relegation with time running out.

And Stearman believes the weight of expectation to return to the Premier League has weighed heavy on the Yorkshire club.

He said: “It’s not as easy as it sounds to get straight back up again after you’ve come down.

“There’s so many comings and goings, it can be a tough transitional period for a club.

“The start we had didn’t particularly help and then the management changed, so the club have done fantastically well to get to this point.”

The Terriers sacked German boss Jan Siewert at the start of the season after just one win in seven months.

That saw the Cowley brothers Danny and Nicky take over the reins as boss and assistant respectively.

And it was the Cowleys who signed Stearman to add some much-needed experience to their defensive line.

“The manager wanted me to pass my experience to the younger players,” added Stearman, who played over 200 games for Wolves and has appeared for Leicester, Ipswich and Fulham during a distinguished career.

“Helping the young, hungry players is something I pride myself on.

“Championship experience is vital at the business end of seasons where promotion or relegation may be on the line. You’ve got to stand up and be counted. You need a few players that are willing to fight and have that experience where they’ve been there and done it before.”