Richards electrifying Red Bulls with pace

Gordon Williams, Gleaner Writer

TORONTO, Canada:

The move was typical Dane Richards. A slippery cut down the flank to elude his marker, punctuated by sizzling pace to ensure he could never be caught.

In only the third minute, on an overcast afternoon last Saturday, the diminutive Jamaican was already putting his stamp - and a distinct spark - into New York Red Bulls' clash against Toronto FC in the United States Major League Soccer (MLS) here at BMO Field.

It seemed all too easy, especially since Richards' targets for the final pass included forwards Thierry Henry and Juan Pablo Angel, trailed by midfielder Rafael Marquez - three international stars who have played in the world's best football leagues, but have now settled with the Red Bulls in North America's top competition.

In the end, Henry was a step slow arriving for Richards' square that skipped untouched across the goalmouth. But the Frenchman turned immediately, raised his hands above his head, and applauded the effort of the 5' 7" winger.

Much will depend on the service the 26-year-old Reggae Boy provides as the MLS season winds down, especially how he meshes with Henry and fellow Red Bulls designated players Marquez and Angel.

That trio of designated players may command the spotlight and a guaranteed combined salary of over US$13 million in 2010, but it is Richards - and his reported US$146,500 payday this season - who the Red Bulls may look to for the extra gear to push the team towards the MLS title.

That would justify their expensive price tags and erase the New York team's disastrous memories of last season's failure to make the play-off.

The little man from Montego Bay is becoming one of the biggest cogs in the Red Bulls machine. The club knows it. Opponents are having a tough time dealing with it.

Big influence

"Every team has in a way to, not drop, but they have to play a special left back who'll try to close down (Richards) because of his pace," coach Hans Backe said after Red Bulls 4-1 win on Saturday. "They have to change, not the playing style, but the organisation and that helps us of course. So he is a big influence."

"When teams play the Red Bulls, Dane is now a marked man," said Shavar Thomas, a national teammate of Richards who plays for Kansas City Wizards in MLS.

Yet Richards appears unfazed by the fresh attention on the club, through the arrival of Marquez and Henry this season to join Angel, who, along with Richards, is now in his fourth year with the Red Bulls. He knows the two latest additions spent years at FC Barcelona, winning titles such as La Liga and Europe's Champions League.

Henry also won a World Cup with France and the English Premier League (EPL) with Arsenal. Marquez is Mexico's version of Franz Beckenbauer.

For Richards, the immediate future involves learning and executing. He has always had good communication with Angel. He said he feels comfortable playing alongside his more famous teammates as well, and has regular conversations with Henry, getting pointers from a man whose game was also once built on speed. It helps his confidence.

"You've gotta have a lot of eye contact with (Henry) because his movement is so good," explained Richards the day before the TFC game. "You've got to ... see his movements and try to play him through. And also, once he's turned, I know he is looking for me (with the pass). He told me that ... . So that just gives me a boost like performing, try to set him up in the box or something like that."

Marquez, a key for the winger because of his skill as a passer, is less "talkative," said Richards. But the Jamaican knows his own play must speak loudly. He simply cannot afford to stand aside awestruck.

"I can't go in my shell," said Richards, who attended Cornwall College and later Clemson University in the US "That will get me out of the team. So I've just got to perform each week with them and just try to improve."

REWARD

The work has paid off. Before last Saturday, the player who in the past has scored goals and led the Red Bulls in assists was without a goal or assist in MLS 2010. He hurt his hamstring earlier in the season and missed games. But he has bounced back.

The week before TFC, in a losing effort against MLS top team Los Angeles Galaxy, he was New York's best player even with the three designated players in the game.

Against TFC another dangerous cross by Richards drew a handball by a defender, resulting in a penalty scored by Angel. Later, teammate Carl Robinson knocked home another Richards square to complete the Red Bulls scoring.

However, the best sign of Richards' resurgence this season probably came on July 25, when the Red Bulls faced EPL club Manchester City in New York in a nationally televised game.

Richards' dazzling show, which earned him man-of-the-match honours in the 2-1 win, included a goal from a thunderous right foot shot about 25 yards out. It also featured a stunning display of raw speed and skill that tormented England international left back Wayne Bridge.

Richards would follow up that performance with another goal against Trinidad and Tobago in Jamaica's 3-1 win. Suddenly, his name was being whispered among targets in the international transfer market. The Red Bulls would prefer - for now - to hear none of that. For them, a successful MLS season leans heavily on the fleet footed winger. It is important that the young Bull runs with the herd of seasoned veterans. It is just as vital for them to respond to Richards' unique attributes.

"Anytime you have world-class speed like that, you can't teach that," said MLS veteran defender Chris Albright, a former US international who usually plays on the Red Bulls' right side with Richards. "So that's a quality (Richards) brings that other guys just don't have."

It is telling that arguably the fastest player in the MLS is being asked to stand still, at least for a New York moment. But he, too, is fixed on a single prize." Right now my focus is on Red Bulls because I would love to get a title with the Red Bulls," said Richards, who reached the MLS final a couple years ago but lost. "Once I keep performing on the field, anything can happen."