Former midfielder Lee Richardson returned to the Granite City last week.

Born in Halifax in 1969, Lee Richardson signed his first professional contract as a midfielder for his local team, Halifax Town. After playing 70 games for the West Yorkshire club, Lee joined Watford before having a spell at Blackburn Rovers, where he played his part in winning promotion to the Premier League.

The newly appointed Aberdeen manager, Willie Miller, came calling ahead of the 1992/93 season as the Dons pushed for silverware. An all-round midfielder, Lee brought a combative style to the team, which quickly made him a fans’ favourite and something of a cult hero. Unfortunately, there were no trophies to celebrate despite the team’s heroic efforts as the Dons finished runners up to Rangers in all domestic competitions.

Affectionately known as ‘Rico’ by the Dons fans, he scored ten goals for Aberdeen, the most memorable coming against Torino in the Cup Winners’ Cup in front of a packed Pittodrie. During his time in the North East of Scotland, Lee also joined a local band called One God Universe and could be regularly spotted playing in venues in Aberdeen.

After returning south, Richardson played for several clubs before finishing his career at Chesterfield, then making the move into coaching, leading to the caretaker manager’s position at the club. After being named the permanent boss, he won a manager of the month award and was nominated for manager of the year as the team fell just short of promotion in the 2008/09 season.

Lee had already been studying through The Open University and moved away from coaching to obtain a Master’s Degree in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Staffordshire University, which has led to him working with some of the country’s top sportsmen. A leading figure in sports psychology, Lee has acted as a consultant for many top sportsmen and clubs.

He is currently the Performance Psychology consultant for Hull City and has worked with professionals in the world of boxing, golf and cricket as well as in football. A whole host of sportsmen have spoken highly of the work Lee has done with them, including former England football manager, Sam Allardyce, former England cricket coach, Peter Moores, and former Newcastle and West Ham midfielder Kevin Nolan, now manager at Notts County.

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