...and Bradford City

[Timmy58]

I see so there were not 5 forwards, so why say it when it is not fact.

Being fairly ancient myself I can recall there was a left winger, right winger, inside left, inside right and centre forward. Behind that there was a right half, left half, centre half and a right back and left back. Emphasis was on attack but probably because the defensive set up wasn't terribly effective.

[MikeSB]

Being fairly ancient myself I can recall there was a left winger, right winger, inside left, inside right and centre forward. Behind that there was a right half, left half, centre half and a right back and left back. Emphasis was on attack but probably because the defensive set up wasn't terribly effective.

Thanks for confirming the situation and the emphasis was on attack as that was the ethos of football back then. Most of the play now is central midfield and lobbing the ball up to a lone striker who rarely gets the ball and it comes back again. With inside forwards and wingers AND a Centre Forward the game was more flowing and more chances of goals created. You are right in that Frank Lord would have found it impossible to score a hat trick in todays football. Its why I don't enjoy watching the game as I used to but that could be age as well..I played right half in my day and scored a hat trick in the first half of one game and was always looking to create chances for others...wing halves today spend most time in their own half defending etc..

Clubs decided it was better to defend and get a point rather than outward attack but it has to be boring to watch and why the attendances are so low and then the cost? Its ourageous that some players are on hundreds of thousands per week...That was the day the game died...Just my opinion of course..

[MikeSB]

I see so there were not 5 forwards, so why say it when it is not fact.

Actually it was fact as Timmy has just explained. It was so long ago now..

[gazan]

Groan.....! On matchday programmes the teams were often shown as having 5 forwards but in reality inside forwards played just ahead of wing-halves. So a sort of 3-4-3 but not so much emphasis on 'shape'.
I note MSB, that you are persisting with the idea of low crowd turnout but you are not answering my point mentioned earlier.

[MikeSB]

Groan.....! On matchday programmes the teams were often shown as having 5 forwards but in reality inside forwards played just ahead of wing-halves. So a sort of 3-4-3 but not so much emphasis on 'shape'.
I note MSB, that you are persisting with the idea of low crowd turnout but you are not answering my point mentioned earlier.

Sorry, the age I was thinking was the sixties and not the seventies...I was referring to the fifties when crowds were up to 15000 here at Gresty Road, I was there in 1960 among 20,000 fans when we had a draw with the PL Champions and won away at Chelsea in the cup, something our club has never achieved since that time. We gained promotion in that decade too and I was just young and innocent, just like now but slightly older... No, just having the stadium a third full isn't very good...and unless you buy a ST the attendance fee is very expensive..

[gazan]

Sorry, the age I was thinking was the sixties and not the seventies...I was referring to the fifties when crowds were up to 15000 here at Gresty Road, I was there in 1960 among 20,000 fans when we had a draw with the PL Champions and won away at Chelsea in the cup, something our club has never achieved since that time. We gained promotion in that decade too and I was just young and innocent, just like now but slightly older... No, just having the stadium a third full isn't very good...and unless you buy a ST the attendance fee is very expensive..

Thanks for the clarification. 70s weren't anybody's 'golden age' in any respect.
When the women's game was banned by the FA, they were getting near full gates. Until very recently this was not the case. I think we all agree that coaching has had little influence on those statistics. So, I think we can agree that, perhaps, other factors may have an influence.🙂