John Peter Richards (born 9 November 1950) is an English retired professional

international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

, who played as a striker. He spent almost all his career at Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club, where he broke the club's goalscoring record, ending with 194 goals in his tally (later overtaken by

Steve Bull Stephen George Bull (born 28 March 1965 in Tipton, Dudley) is an English former professional footballer who is best remembered for his 13-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers. He played there from 1986 until his retirement from playing in 19 ...

). During a fourteen-year association with Wolves he won two League Cups and also played in the first UEFA Cup Final in 1972. He was capped once by the England national team in 1973.

Career

Richards signed for the Molineux club as a professional in July 1969 and made his debut on 28 February 1970 in a 3–3 draw at

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

. He scored his first league goal for Wolves the following season against

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

on 19 September 1970. In 1971–72, "King John" came of age, scoring 13 league goals and helping Wolves become runners-up in the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

. The following season, he was even stronger, scoring 36 goals in total (his highest seasonal tally) and, in 1974, he scored the winning goal as the team beat Manchester City to win the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

. Richards was leading scorer for Wolves in six of the next seven seasons, culminating in winning a second League Cup medal in 1980 against

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

. During his time with the club, Richards became Wolves' all-time leading scorer with 194 goals in total, a record that was subsequently bettered by

in 1992. However, he still holds the club record for the most

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

goals, with 24. Richards eventually left the club and moved to Portugal in 1983, following a loan spell with

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

. He played two seasons for

C.S. Marítimo Club Sport Marítimo MH M, commonly known as Marítimo ( locally ), is a Portuguese sports club founded in Funchal, Madeira, in 1910. Marítimo is best known for its football team playing in Portugal's top-flight competition, the Primeira Lig ...

, helping the side to promotion. Richards' goal-scoring prowess was rewarded with a single

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

, against

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

on 12 May 1973 at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a association football, football stadium in the Walton, Liverpool, Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area ...

. The competition for international places was fierce and the acknowledged talent England possessed in the form of Kevin Keegan, Martin Chivers and Allan Clarke ensured Richards became a "one-cap wonder".Lloyd, Grahame; "One Cap Wonders: The Ultimate Claim to Football Fame" ''Robson Books'', 23 November 2001; Hardback, 256pp, . After retiring as a player, Richards went into local government in Wolverhampton and Cannock; later returning to Wolves as a director in 1994, then as managing director in 1997, a post he held until 2000. In 2009, he worked as operations director of Pitchcare, a Telford-based online service for groundsmen."Pitchcare: The Team"
''PitchCare.com'' (retrieved 25 July 2009).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, John 1950 births Living people Footballers from Warrington English men's footballers England men's international footballers England men's B international footballers England men's under-21 international footballers England men's under-23 international footballers English Football League players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Derby County F.C. players C.S. Marítimo players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. directors and chairmen English Football League representative players Men's association football forwards English expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal