Today's lesson: Full-backs in defence
A well-known story involving Chelsea full-back Eddie McCreadie still causes a laugh in the dressing-room at Stamford Bridge. When chosen to play for Scotland against Spurs in a testimonial match for the widow of John White in 1965, McCreadie was given on specific order: 'Those overlaps you do for Chelsea; we want you to try three of them. But no more than three, mind.'
McCreadie, an instinctive attacker who was a spectacular exponent of the overlap which became so popular in the mid-sixties, laughed at and then ignored what was a crazily specific instruction. But although sentiments of the advisers to the Scotland team that night were expressed in such a laughable manner, there was more than a glimmer of sense behind the thought. In an era of attacking full-back play it had become easy to forget that the primary task of a defender was still to defend.
Full-backs had to be able to tackle, to win the ball for their side, they had to possess instinctive positional sense both to know when to move infield to cover and when to force their immediate opponent out wide to less menacing positions away from goal, and they had to be strong enough in the air to be able to challenge powerful forwards when put under pressure at the far post. Above all they could not be left floundering and breathless upfield when their own goal was under pressure.
Copyright Crown Publishers, 1976.
A well-known story involving Chelsea full-back Eddie McCreadie still causes a laugh in the dressing-room at Stamford Bridge. When chosen to play for Scotland against Spurs in a testimonial match for the widow of John White in 1965, McCreadie was given on specific order: 'Those overlaps you do for Chelsea; we want you to try three of them. But no more than three, mind.'
McCreadie, an instinctive attacker who was a spectacular exponent of the overlap which became so popular in the mid-sixties, laughed at and then ignored what was a crazily specific instruction. But although sentiments of the advisers to the Scotland team that night were expressed in such a laughable manner, there was more than a glimmer of sense behind the thought. In an era of attacking full-back play it had become easy to forget that the primary task of a defender was still to defend.
Full-backs had to be able to tackle, to win the ball for their side, they had to possess instinctive positional sense both to know when to move infield to cover and when to force their immediate opponent out wide to less menacing positions away from goal, and they had to be strong enough in the air to be able to challenge powerful forwards when put under pressure at the far post. Above all they could not be left floundering and breathless upfield when their own goal was under pressure.
Copyright Crown Publishers, 1976.
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