ASSOCIATION

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 7449, 25 May 1911, Page 9

ASSOCIATION

SPECIAL ARTICLE TACTICS OF SOME FAMOUS HALVES By Albert Shepherd (Newcastle's Famous Centre). A centre forward "who has any pretensions to goal-scoring—and that is what he is placed there to do—has more than a passing chance to pick np some ideas on the tactics of our foremost halfbacks. In fact, it is absolutely essential that lie should know those, for the first thing he has to learn, :s how to circumvent th© centre half, that horrid, worrying chap who dogs your footsteps from the beginning to end pnd rivals Mary's little lamb of nursery lame for going everywhere you go. It is no uncommon thing for a half-back to go on tho field with instructions to warch so-and-so, to stick to him closer tnan a brother. I have played more than ono game in which tho centre half has never left me more than half a dozen yards. What chance has the poor centre forward against such tactics? Well, ho has to manage somehow —but stay, here I am airing personal grievances when I was asked to write about hali backs. Anyhow, if an excuse is required for tho choice of subject, I think the above a suificient one. The half back line is without, a doubt tho most important section of a side, iou may have a brilliant goal-keeper, two splendid fuli-baoks, and a forward line second to none, but if the haUbaciis are not individually and collectively of tho very best, the side will never attain to the highest honours. The hail-back line is connecting link between attack and defence; when tiie play is being .waged in tho enemy's quarters there tJio halves must be, backing up their iorwards, and when their side is on tho defensive, there is ettll. work for the middle men. It is to a largo extent true that tho haL-back is not often brought face to faco with a crisis such as the goal-keeper has to faco when a forward has beaten tno backs. Or again the half-back is not expected to regularly score goals, a nerve-racking business when so much often depends on ono shot. , Thus the j half-back is saved some anxiety on that score, but on the other,hand the work ho does is seldom appreciated at its true value. A FOOTBALLER BRED AND BORN. X have heard a good deal of talk about great half-backs of old, much of which I am prepared to believe. Oi Forman, Crabtree, Kelly, llowarth, Bailey, Holt and Cowan, to mention only a few, but I prefer to deal in this article with great men I have played against, and there are enough of them to occupy the space at my disposal.' My experience of first class football dates back some six years, and I well remember one of tho first games I played, when a Bolton Wanderer, was against Liverpool. Alex. Raisheck of tho fair hair was playing at centre half then, and was one of the greatest half-backs X have ever had tho bad luck to bo up against. Where be got all bis stamina from, I have not tho faintest idea. There was no tiring him, ho was here, there and everywhere and a footballer bred and born if ever there were one. Ore minute he would be shooting at his opponents’ goal and in the next defending his own or nipping the ball from the ■oe of a forward. A man who wanted to get the bettor of Raisheck had to go on the field with'his sleeves rolled up. I have had some and I know. When I think of the word energy, I always think of Raisheck at the same time. Liverpool had a great half-back line then, with Raisheck in tbe centre and Bradley and Parry on either side. ", Another half-back who can be depended upon to make the opposing forwards work for their goals is Charlie Roberts, a totally different typo of player , from Raisheck. Roberts is a big strong, man and one would naturally expect him to make due use o£ his physique, but as a matter of fact, tho exact opposite is tho case, for he goes about his_work in a quiet methodical, way. If Roberts had not been a great footballer, I fancy he would hare made a great chess Mayer. Ho seems to be able to define the intentions of your move almost _ before yon have started the making of "it. He sees several moves ahead, in fact. Roberts is a half-back who plays with his head (in two senses) and this saves his feet a lot of unnecessary work. A sportsman is Charlie in the truest and host sense of he" word, i THE RIGHT MAN IN THE EIGHT PLACE.

A great half-back, and in f ac L a great player in any position on the field, liar goal, is n club-mate of mine, Colin Veiteh, and incidentally, as captain of a side,, without a superior. I have not always played in front of Veitch and have had many a whole-hearted tussle with him in former days. Ho goes about bis work in a quiet, unassuming manner which tempts his opponents to think to themselves "Oh, here’s an easy ono to got round.’’ But the idea is very soon squashed when the actual trial comes, for depend upon it. whore the fight is thickest, there you will find Colin. Always the right man in the right place at tho right moment. He never does anything without having a good reason for his action and that is one great reason why, though a veteran in the footballing sense, ho is still ono of 1 our greatest half-backs. Long may he continue to take an active part in.the game, for it is men like Veitch who have done much for the general good of the professional footballer. Wo must now jump from Newcastle to Bristol, a far cry, but there is a nippy little light-weight half who plays there. They call him "Wedlock the Wonderful, and small wonder. Height is a valuable asset to a half-back, bat Wedlock hag overcome the disadvantages of physique to such good purpose as to become England’s best centre half—not the world's, mind you—l am saving him to the last. I nut Wedlock in tho same class as Raisheck, and though there may be men who are more adept at passing the ball to good advantage, he has no peer when it comes to tackling. He is the kind oi man one is tempted to get vexed with; always at your feet, nipping the hall from your toe, never tired, but worry, ing you Horn beginning to end of the ninety minutes. Perhaps along with Wedlock I should mention Ben Warren, now of Chelsea, not so good as he used to be, perhaps, but a great tackier still. THE GREATEST HALF-BACK. Some folks like to have the best course of a meal served last, and although I should not compare this article to a good meal I have endeavoured to please these by reserving the last place for Peter McWilliam. I know that by tackling the question ,of. who is our best half-back. I ’ am treading delicate ground, but I suppose, like everyone else, I am entitled to one opinion. Bristol folk will tell you Wedlock has no superior; at Liverpool they stand by Makepeace; at Manchester Roberts is tho idol; Tottenham folks think tliero is none better than Dan Steel; while even Barnsley possesses in Boyle a man who, partisans will tell you, is the best half-back of to-day. But in my opinion, not one of these is, equal to McWilliam. He has my vote as the greatest half-back now playing. I know of no half who has such a command over the ball, his trickery is marvellous. I have seen him trick three or four men with what to all appearances were mere twists of the body. I have seen men go for him in no half-hearted fashion, but ho has swerved in the opposite direction and then left them looking rather ridiculous. As he is only ten and a half stone, and not

over strong at that, ho relies to a great extent on his judgment, which is seldom at fault. It is a distinct pleasure to play in front of a man like Mao, for you can rely on his giving the ball to you when you are in a good position. FAULTS OF HALF-BACKS. Though I have not. by any means, exhausted the list of great half-backs of to-day, my space is nearly gone, .there are just one or-two little general defects which I may be permitted to point out in my, last few words. The hist of these is tho tendency of half-backs lo refrain from shooting at goal. Wh.ie I would not advise him to shoot on every conceivable occasion or when ono of his forwards is in a better position it often happens in the course of a game that the half-back is really in the best scoring position. If your forwards are wellmarked, what is the use of giving the ball to them ? Take a shot at goal and the chances are, that the goal-keeper, unprepared or with his sight of the bail impaired by intervening, players will be beaten. . Another fault is for the wing half to wander from his position, which should bo that, of guarding his wing. When tho half-hack is not m his place when dntv calls, it means that tho fullback is loft with more than a fair shn.ro of responsibility. Remember that tho first duty'of a half-back is to stop the forwards and then when ho has got the ball to part with it to the best advantage. I like to see a side which appears to”havo eight forwards when attacking and five full-backs when on the defensive. This means hard work all the time for the half-back, but whatever else he may be, it is essential that the halfback bo a worker.