As manager Alan Pardew and the rest of his squad prepared for the opening game of their US tour against Sporting Kansas City during the early hours of of morning, former Manchester City midfielder Barton and his French counterpart were instead jetting off with the club's development squad after being refused entry visas for very different, but equally frustrating reasons. But their presence in Holland could prove a bonus for 19-year-old Michael Richardson. The teenager was working as an electrician for Newcastle City Council and playing junior football for local club Walker Central when he was offered a trial by the Magpies last season, and his whirlwind rise since has propelled him to the fringes of the first-team squad at St James' Park. Richardson made the bench four times as last season's Premier League campaign drew to a close, and despite the summer arrivals of midfielders Cabaye and Sylvain Marveaux, is hoping to make the breakthrough this time around. He said: "It makes it harder, but it's also good for us as well because it's good to learn from them. "They have come in and they are different kinds of players and the more and more we train with them, the more we are going to be better for it. "We are playing against better players, so it's only going to help our progression." With owner Mike Ashley determined to run the club on sustainable financial lines, Pardew has shown a willingness to blood some of his younger players with the likes of Shane Ferguson and Sammy Ameobi tasting senior action last season. Richardson's elevation to the first team came after he impressed development coach Willie Donachie and reserve team manager Peter Beardsley, and he is hoping for further recognition as he begins that process once again in Holland. He said: "I just have to keep working hard in the reserves first, keep playing games and hopefully play to the best of my ability to impress Willie and Pete. "Then if they see something, they will obviously tell [first-team coach] Steve Stone or [assistant manager] John Carver or the gaffer, and hopefully I will be pushed in." The likes of Steven Taylor, Andy Carroll and Shola and Sammy Ameobi have in recent years proved that the potential for home-grown players to emerge from the ranks on Tyneside still exists, and it is the Ameobi brothers, themselves Walker Central old boys, who are providing the spur for Richardson. He said: "That's what they [Walker] get through to their youngsters - they see Shola, Sammy and me coming through and then actually playing for Newcastle, and it gives them the incentive to do the same." The younger Ameobi got his big chance at Chelsea on May 15 when he joined his older sibling on the pitch as a substitute, and that moment cannot come soon enough for Richardson as he attempts to complete the transition from fan to player. He said: "It's every little boy's dream to go on and play for Newcastle United's first team. "Some weeks, you go to watch them and you are sitting watching them doing the warm-up thinking, 'I wish that was me out there'. "A couple of weeks later, you are, so I suppose you have to pinch yourself, but keep your feet on the ground at the same time."
