Richard Welding
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Richard Welding (born 28th January 1981 in Wigan , Lancashire) is a rugby union footballer for Leeds Tykes . His usual position is on the wing. He made his Tykes debut against his former club Cornish Pirates as a replacement on 23rd September 2006 at Headingley Carnegie in a 21-20 victory.
The Tykes signed Pirates’ prolific try scorer on a two year deal before the start of the National Division One season of 2006/7.
Welding was one of the hottest properties in National Division One after being named in Rugby Times’ Team of the Year on the wing despite strong competition from the player's at promotion winning NEC Harlequins.
Welding said at the time of his signing for Leeds: "I really feel this is the best move possible for me at this stage of my career. The challenge of trying to win National Division One and regain the place in the Premiership is a massive one and one that I am looking forward to. Everything is in place for the players at Leeds to go out and perform and that is great from a players point of view and gives us the best possible opportunity to get the result we want.
"It will be a big challenge to bounce back at the first opportunity, I know from first hand experience that National Division One is a strong competition and it is getting tougher each year. We saw with Quins coming into the division this year that everyone raised their standard and saw where they needed to be to compete. That can only be good for the game but will make it tough for the Tykes but that is something I relish.
"I spoke with the likes of Tim Fourie and James Ponton when I was at Sedgley Park and they said what a good set up there is at Leeds and I am really looking forward to getting started."
Welding began his rugby career at his local club Orrell RUFC, making his debut a week after his 18th birthday in 1999.
He joined the Pirates at the start of the 2005/6 season after a successful period with Sedgley Park where he scored 11 tries in their first season in National Division One.
In 2005/6 Welding scored 16 tries in 24 appearances in all competitions for the Pirates and has scored over 400 points in his career so far. .
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