Unique book – ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL, John Goodall, 1898

 

Unique book – ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL, John Goodall, 1898

William Blackwood and Sons was a Scottish publishing house and printer found by William Blackwood in 1804. It published many important authors including John Buchan, George Eliot, Margaret Oliphant and Joseph Conrad. The company commissioned John Goodall, with the assistance of S. Archibald De Bear, to write an instructional book in 1898 for aspiring footballers in which the rules of the game are listed along with how to develop the skills needed to successfully play in various positions as part of a team.

ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL by John Goodall, then of Derby County, cost 1 shilling/5p today. It is a unique publication.  It was dedicated to G.O. Smith who the author describes as ‘The Best Centre-Forward in my time.’

Goodall begins by stressing that whilst much can be gained ‘from observation and advice, patience, practice, and enthusiasm must do more… one cannot hope to become a good player without very hard work.’

Once the technicalities of the game are mastered, players should be guided by instinct, ‘which in this case means quickness of thought.’ Players must know each other’s play, as was the case at Preston where he played between 1885 and 1889.

Goodall had experienced the game when there were virtually no laws. In the years since then dribbling had been replaced by scientific football in which passing or combination play was king. Goodall noted that ‘in earlier days very little was known about training.’ He also offered advice about diet on match-days stating that ‘footballers should have a good square meal about three hours before the start of the match.’

Goodall, who during his career played in most positions, including goalkeeper, also uses the examples of great players in their respective roles to explain to readers who are keen to improve their own game what skills they need to work on.

Of those playing in the half back line up he states that ‘they have the most difficult position on the field. They have to join in both attack and in defence….’ According to Goodall, Ernest Needham was the best half back.

Whilst Goodall contends that football can be played by men of all sizes he believed that ‘a good big man is always preferable to a good little one.’ Up front he believed that ‘the collective style is preferable’ being superior to the employment of two wide men with three men inside waiting for centres or two pairs playing together with the centre forward waiting for the ball. In this ‘Sunderland in their prime came very near perfections. Their passing was admirable, and the players were well balanced.’

Goodall advises players to respect the referee, keep their temper under control and to not heed any advice from spectators. In his experience ‘it is matches away from home that the best mental qualities of the footballer are brought to play. He has few friends among the spectators….the footballer must be indifferent alike to jeers and cheers.’

The art of passing, states Goodall ‘lies in the placing or rolling of the ball so that the player who is to have control of it shall lose no time in proceeding. In fact, there should be a continuity in the progress of the ball, even though several players are touching it.’ It was ‘the Scotch.. who originated short passing and collective attack, and showed how successful the game could be made.’

Goodall believed that ‘a good footballer ought to shine more or less in any position.’ Compared to books today aimed at young aspiring footballers seeking to improve their skills then Goodall’s book is very basic – as by way of example he proposes keeping the players away from the ball during training as this will make them more hungry for it during matches at the weekend - but it is a sign of how the ageing footballer was regarded at the time that he was chosen to write it.

Sadly, Goodall was never asked to write a book about his own football story. Some footballers from his era were interviewed by their local newspapers after their careers had ended. The articles were generally published in a series, some in the Saturday Football Specials, over a number of weeks. They included the remembrances of Archie Hunter, the famous Aston Villa captain who led his side to FA Cup glory in 1887, which were published in the Birmingham Weekly Mercury in 1890.  

Mark Metcalf is writing a biography of John Goodall.