New book "The prince of centre halves" Tommy TG Jones

summerisle · May 10, 2018

Cheers @Groucho

Steve Wigan · May 10, 2018

Bluebonic said:
Back in his day is way before my time, but the basic set up when i was a kid was GK, two full backs, two centre backs, a right and a left half and a centre half, then an outside right or outside left (wingers) inside forward (number 10) and a centre forward. God life was so much easier then!

Not strictly true....in the 40s/50s it was a basic 1-2-3-5 with a left and right back, a centre half and left and right 'wing halves'. So effectively there were five forwards...two wingers, two 'inside forwards' and a centre forward. The first big tactical innovation came with the 'deep lying centre forward',with the two inside forwards playing in advance of him.(like two strikers} at the forefront of this innovation was Don Revie,and Raich Carter, I think. There were of course some teams that relied on a big strong 'target man' type,but by the early 60s,influenced by the European teams we were beginning to see more of, the game became a lot more tactical. As some teams,because of their financial clout, became stronger, the majority became more defence minded and we finished up with a 'lone striker' becoming almost the norm, to the eternal detriment of the game as a spectacle.
Another tactic which came from Europe, or rather Italy, was the defensive ploy of playing a 'sweeper'...a spare man behind the defence as insurance. Effectively it was the centre half lying deep,and one of the inside forwards dropping back to mix it in front of the defence...in other words do the ball winning and graft to allow the flair players to do their stuff. For example, the vastly under rated and very valuable Dennis Stevens at Everton.