Southampton: Preston handed promotion boost in the form of Richard Chaplow | OneFootball

Richard Chaplow was an integral part of the Southampton squad that delivered a memorable journey to the Premier League; an 11-year stay that ended in 2022/23 as they finished bottom of the table.

The story of how they got promoted back in 2012 is a great one, with the Saints achieving back-to-back promotions to the Premier League from League One.

Under the guidance of physiotherapist turned manager Nigel Adkins, the Saints went from a team playing in the third tier of English football in the 2010/11 campaign to a Premier League outfit by 2012/13.

But doing back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League is not easy, and requires a squad who are reliable in withstanding different styles of play.

Adkins had these types of players in abundance - and one that was a key cog in that team was central midfielder Chaplow.

Chaplow forced out by Preston

Chaplow had started his career at Burnley, before moving to West Bromwich Albion in 2005. He would actually spend three months on loan in 2006 with Southampton, helping them to a 12th-placed finish in the Championship.

In January 2008, Chaplow would join Preston North End for a reported fee of £800,000, with £550,000 in performance-related add-ons.

After making 12 appearances in the second half of the 07/08 season, he would go on to help the Lilywhites finish in the play-offs in 08/09, finishing in sixth place ahead of Cardiff City on goals scored. Ultimately, they would lose in the semi-finals to Sheffield United.

The 09/10 season would see Preston fighting it out near the bottom of the table instead, finishing in 17th, with Chaplow making 31 appearances. Preston were going through financial troubles, and had to transfer list eight players, including Chaplow.

Chaplow had reportedly been of interest to Preston’s bitter rivals Blackpool, who had just been promoted to the Premier League at the time, but a deal never happened.

Having failed to make an appearance at the start of the 10/11 season, Chaplow would rejoin Southampton on an initial one-month loan in September 2010, which was then extended to December 2010.

The move was made permanent in January 2011, when he joined for an undisclosed fee on a two-and-a-half-year deal. Chaplow was not necessarily a player who would score from midfield often, but when he did, they would be in games where they needed it.

Chaplow scored and assisted another in a 4-4 draw against Peterborough United, whilst also winning his side a controversial penalty. Darren Ferguson, the manager who transfer listed Chaplow at Preston, who had then moved on to Peterborough, accused Chaplow of diving. Chaplow would ultimately get the last laugh over his former boss and he would go on to help them get promoted back to the Championship after two years away, making 33 appearances.

The next season saw the Saints defy all expectations and go on to once again get promoted to the Premier League. Chaplow would chip in with three goals, with one of them again haunting Peterborough after he scored the first of Saints' goals in a 2-1 win. In total, Chaplow would make 25 appearances but did not feature as much in the second half of the campaign after suffering a knee injury in November 2011 against Bristol City, which kept him out for a number of months.

Chaplow’s season in the Premier League saw him only make three appearances, having been pushed down the pecking order. After failing to secure a move away from the club in January 2013, his time at St Mary’s would come to a close in July 2013.

To achieve back-to-back promotions, you need players that can adapt to various different situations to help you win as many football matches as possible. Speaking to the Independent after a win over Middlesbrough, Adkins praised Chaplow for his performance, and what he said epitomised what Chaplow was for Southampton: reliable.

"[Chaplow] gets into goal-scoring positions but his great asset is his flexibility and he is a player with loads of ability," the manager said. "I asked him to play wide on the right for this match and he responded with a great performance."

Whilst only summarising one of his many great performances in a Southampton shirt, those words from Adkins could have easily summed up Chaplow's overall time at St Mary's. Chaplow was very underrated during his time at Saints, being a key cog in a team that managed to do what very few have done to this day in jumping from League One to the Premier League with relative ease.