Jazz Richards: From taming Eden Hazard to Haverfordwest’s Europa Conference League dream

Jazz Richards has gone from Eden Hazard to Haverfordwest County, from Euro 2016 to part-time football in the Cymru Premier.

Eight years ago, Richards was a surprise inclusion in the Wales team to face a star-studded Belgium in European Championship qualifying.

Chris Coleman’s team delivered a famous victory which moved them significantly closer to their first major championship in 58 years.

Gareth Bale scored the only goal, but at the core of Wales’ triumph was a courageous defensive effort which featured an inspired performance from the relatively unheralded Richards.

“It’s hard to explain the feeling in that game,” says Richards, who played for Swansea City, Crystal Palace, Huddersfield, Fulham and Cardiff City before moving to Haverfordwest aged only 29.

“Everybody was putting their bodies on the line, everyone stuck to their jobs.

“For me that’s probably overall the best feeling – atmosphere, game – that I have been involved in.”

Belgium’s golden generation were close to their peak at the time, with the likes of Thibaut Courtois, Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku – who began on the bench, such were the visitors’ attacking options – involved in Cardiff.

Their brightest star at the time was Hazard, who had just been crowned the best player in the Premier League.

Richards had not initially been named in the Wales squad, but injury problems saw him called up belatedly by Coleman.

Then, on the eve of the game, came news that he would be lining up on the right side of Wales’ defence – in direct opposition to Hazard – because Newcastle United’s Paul Dummett was not fit.

“I went from not meant to be there to starting,” Richards says.

“For me then my mindset was ‘no-one’s expecting me to be amazing in this game, just go out there and enjoy it’.”

While Hazard had been reigning supreme in the Premier League with Chelsea, Richards’ preparation for Belgium had been a loan spell at Fulham, who were then in the Championship.

Yet it was Richards who emerged with the credit from his duel with Hazard as Wales secured an unlikely success against the team who were ranked second in the world.

“I still get comments now about him (Hazard) being in my pocket and stuff like that, which is ridiculous,” Richards says with a smile.

“People have the misconception that it was a man-marking show. It wasn’t. We all knew what we were doing as a team.

“It was a massive team effort. I think playing against a player like Hazard in that game is what made my performance that much better if you like.

“But I had another 10 players on the pitch that helped me, so I will never put it down to my performance that stopped Eden Hazard.”

Richards would go on to make one appearance at Euro 2016 – one of just 14 international caps – as Wales went on that unforgettable run to the semi-finals.

He played in the Premier League and Europa League for Swansea, and helped both Palace and Cardiff win promotions to the top flight.

But after being released by Cardiff in 2020, Richards was out of football until he joined Haverfordwest the following spring.

He revealed on switching to Wales’ domestic league that he had turned down opportunities in the EFL because life in the professional game had affected his mental health.

Richards is still young enough to be playing full-time football now, but insists there are no regrets over the change in his career.

“I was done with football at the time,” he says. “If I’d stayed in the professional game, who knows where I would have been mentally – I could have been better, could have been worse.

“I don’t look back with any regret.”

Haverfordwest are hoping fans will turn out in their numbers as they look to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit against North Macedonia’s Shkendija, a professional side who are European regulars.

Haverfordwest – who cannot play at home in Pembrokeshire because of Uefa stadium regulations – are involved in continental competition for just the second time in their history.

For Richards, though the stakes may be lower than in his professional days, there is no shortage of motivation.

“We got treated perfectly out in North Macedonia. We had a lovely hotel – we did it properly,” he says.

“It’s stuff I have been used to in the past, but coming to Haverfordwest you don’t really expect it. I don’t think the lads did either.

“But what I want to say to them now is, you have set your standards, that’s the bar, so don’t make this a one-off. We have got to keep repeating this year after year.”