Tom Richardson

Educated: Cheltenham College, University of Gloucester (Sports Education)

Occupation: Multi-Discipline Coach, Cheltenham College

The Richardson family is packed full of sports people. Dad John played cricket for Yorkshire Youth, elder brother James was a cross country runner who now trains racehorses, sister Hannah plays hockey and lacrosse, whilst younger sibling Edward (currently studying at St. Andrew's University) plays rugby, cricket and hockey.

"Hockey was my first sporting love" admitted Tom who didn't really take up rugby until he was fourteen.  "I'm still not sure how it happened really. Cheltenham College played most sports and I drifted into the game. At my size I was always destined to be a scrum half." He recalled. Tom also played cricket through the age groups with Gloucestershire as a batsman.

 "At eighteen I got the chance to travel as the College had an exchange programme with Wynburg School, near Cape Town and I went there for a year, coaching hockey, cricket and rugby to both male and female students." This experience also gave Tom the chance to test his mettle in one of the toughest rugby environments in the world. "If you think my size might be an issue over here, you should see the South Africans! I played for Villages and was able to prove a few people wrong, turning out for the first XV."

When Tom returned to the UK, he tried his hand with Gloucester Under 19s, but a spell on the bench convinced him that Worcester's Academy was a better bet. "Ultimately I got rewarded with a Worcester 1st XV contract, as No.3 scrum half." But events took a strange twist when injury catapulted him onto the field as a makeshift winger. It will not surprise Stour spectators to hear that he made a great fist of it  - his speed off the mark this season has played a major part in the team's style - but despite a hat trick of tries on debut (versus Moseley) and a haul of 14 tries from six outings, it was clear that Worcester didn't see this as his long term future.

Tom moved to Pertemps Bees where he played for two seasons, meeting up again with both Nick Baxter and Jim Jenner, now at the helm at Stour. The three were re-united at the start of this season when Tom moved to Stourton Park. He also met up with fly half Sam Robinson and the two hit it off immediately. "It's just one of those things. We have similar interests, respect each other's game and it felt a natural fit right from the start.

We have some good banter, and it's a reflection of the general mood in the dressing room. Both Nick and Jim are 'old school' believing in putting 100% into everything they do, but also appreciating that people also have a job to do outside rugby. The attitude has rubbed off on the entire squad, and we seem to have a healthy combination of youth and experience. This - and the desire to win - has trickled down into the Development Squad as well."

Only just into the third month of the season and Tom is featuring in the League's top try scorers, but how different it might have been. "I'd been on the verge of returning to hockey when Mitch and Jim suggested coming to Stour. I turned up for a training session - just to watch - and ended up playing against Worcester Academy the  following night, scoring a try in the process." The rest as they say is history, and Tom looks set to join in a select post war group of top scrum halves at Stour that includes Lloyd-Jones, Moore, Morley, Dickens and Dawson.