Try-happy Charlie looking to make it a family double

DEAN RICHARDS isn’t the only member of his family in line for silverware this season with son Charlie 80 minutes away from Cup glory.

Like his father, Richards junior, below, plays No.8 and is a key member of the Tynedale Colts side that has defied the odds to make it through to the final of the RFU National U18 Cup.

Tynedale will face Maidenhead at Sixways next Saturday, the same day that Newcastle take on Exeter for the right to compete in the Premiership final.

“I think the lads have surprised themselves by getting this far and they are enjoying every minute of it,” said coach Richard Cramb.

“We’ve got further than we thought we would and come through a couple of very tight games where we have won with the last kick of the game.”

While it has been an outstanding team effort from the tournament newcomers Tynedale, Richards has been one of the standout individuals in the Cup run with his intelligent reading of the game and nose for the try line. Always seemingly in the right place at the right time, Richards bagged a hat-trick in the crucial 33-32 win over Old Northamptonians that saw Tynedale through to the knockout stages before touching down again in last week’s 38-17 semi-final win over Sheffield. “He has been pretty much ever-present in the Cup run. Any good team needs a strong backbone and he is certainly part of that,” Cramb said. Three of Tynedale’s team are associated with the Falcons’ academy – Will Roberts, Oscar Caudle and Ben Robson – while fly-half Cameron Grant is reputed to be as good a kicker as any in the Premiership. “He’s not far off, he has a big boot and has kicked some game-clinching kicks on more than one occasion this season. He is a very important player for us,” Cramb agreed.