2010 was the last time he played for them and after stints at the Celtic Crusaders and the Leeds Rhinos, veteran prop Richard Moore has returned to the Wakefield Wildcats on a 1-year deal.
The 31-year old is keen to return to the club and make up for lost time and looks forward to knuckling down and earning a spot in the 17.
“I’m really excited to be coming back here,†he said.
“I probably played my best rugby here and that’s one of the main reasons I chose to come back when I had the opportunity. Now I’m just looking forward to getting stuck into pre-season and getting back to the form that the Wakefield fans saw me in.
“The club has had to let a few players go but the lads that are left, there’s still a lot of talent in this team and I’m looking forward to playing with them.
“I’ve probably learnt a lot of things from other clubs I’ve been too. To be fair, I haven’t had the game time that I wanted so I probably haven’t progressed as much as I’d have liked to. Hopefully coming back here I’ll be in the team week-in, week-out, pick some form up and get better each week.â€
With Wakefield in the news for a well publicised financial situation and with many believing they will be languishing towards the bottom of the ladder, it is the sort of challenge that Moore says he looks forward to.
“I think before the season starts, people will be doubting Wakefield. They doubted Wakefield when I was here last time and I think it’s something that Wakefield deal with. To be honest, I enjoy stuff like that. I thrive off people putting me down and asking questions. What excites me and makes me tick is when people doubt me,” said Moore.
“When I played here before, when you go to these big clubs they just expect to beat Wakefield. Wakefield are always psyched up to play the big teams and knock one of them off and I can’t see anything changing in that.â€
Moore, who is the second new face in the Wakefield roster, looks forward to working alongside someone he knows well in Dan Smith.
“I was lucky enough to work with Dan and he’s a cracking lad. It was a shame to see him go (to Australia) because he was a good player before he left but I’m sure he would have learnt a lot out there and hopefully bringing him back here will give an opportunity,” said Moore.
“I’m 32 in December and hopefully they’ll look up to me a bit, keep me on my toes and I’ll keep them on their toes.
“It would be nice to get a starting position in the team but just playing week-in, week-out (is my aim). I play my best rugby when I’m enjoying it and hopefully this year will show everyone that I’m enjoying it here.â€
One other thing that Moore is eager to rediscover, is the passionate and positive relationship with the passionate Wakefield fans.
“My time here before, they were so supportive when I got ill,” said Moore.
“They obviously got on with me and I think I showed that by enjoying it on the pitch and hopefully we can have some fun times here again.”