Passing (association football)

Passing the ball is a key part of association football. This brings an advantage in that helps secure possession of the ball, particularly as play is taken towards the opponents' goal. The skill of dribbling the ball is seen much less in modern football matches than in the first half of the twentieth century. This observation is often noted with regret by fans of the game who were familiar with older styles. The hallmarks of passing in soccer is the passing of the ball between players of the same team including the forward pass.

Development of football codes permitting ball passing

The earliest reference in English to "passing" of the ball occurs in the early 1860s [ [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=pass&searchmode=none Online Etymology Dictionary ] ] , around the time that association football was being "invented". The original Football Association rules of 1863 state that, "A player shall not be allowed to throw the ball or pass it to another with his hands". It is clear that at this time players were familiar with the concept of passing the ball to each other with their feet. It is also noteworthy that the direction of the pass was not regulated in the early rules of the Football Association.

There is, however, some evidence that passing ball games existed prior to this time, although it is obviously difficult to know if these resembled modern tactics.

Early references to ball passing

In 1581 Richard Mulcaster is the first describe football teams consisting of players of different positions ("standings"). This suggests that passing probably took place between players, although this is not stated explicitly. The only specific reference to player to player passing in football like ball games comes from Carew in his 1602 account of Cornish hurling [http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/srvcr10.txt] . In this he describes "dealing" as the ball being specifically passed from one member of the same team to another. There are two other early allusions to passing the ball, but in each it is not certain that the ball was being passed between members of their own team. In 1650 English puritan Richard Baxter alludes to player to player passing of the ball during a football game in his book "Everlasting Rest": "like a Football in the midst of a crowd of Boys, tost about in contention from one to another" [ Marples, M. 1954. "A History of Football", Secker and Warburg, London] . Similarly David Wedderburn in 1633 suggests that his students might want to use the Latin words literally meaning "strike it here" and "strike it again (or back)" during ball games. It is not clear whether this was intended to be used between players of the same team. One later translation of this text from the 1950s uses the English word "pass", but this is not used explicitly in the original Latin or the English original translation. The original Latin uses the word "percute", literally to "strike". Striking the ball with a foot is not specified. Contrary to media articles, Wedderburn does not specify the forward pass.

The public schools of England (early 19th century) and the Cambridge Rules

The public schools of England had developed their own forms of football since at least the fifteenth century and these were subsequently very influential in the formulation of the 1863 first ever rules of modern association football by the Football Association. There was a wide range of games and codes at these schools, as these games had evolved in isolation. Many involved dribbling and players were often very skillful at this art. Passing was certainly part of some games, as can be seen in the game of rugby football. The value of passing the ball in these various games depended upon the offside rule in that particular code. Some public school games kept a very tight offside rule, thus making forward passing worthless. Some rules, however, allowed for forward passing so long as there were more than 3 opposition players behind the ball. This rule permitted the positioning of players ahead of the ball. Such passing was called "passing on" and some players became deft at spying gaps to move the ball forward to team mates. This is noteworthy for marking the origins of forward passing and is very likely to have been the predecessor of the "combination game". Definitive proof of rules permitting such "passing on" begins with the Cambridge Rules of 1856 but is likely to have been included in even earlier versions. As these were based upon public school football games it is also very probable that the origin of the passing game comes from certain English public schools. Certainly, during FA meetings to discuss the development of the rules of soccer before 1867 there is evidence that representatives of Charterhouse and Westminster School (whose football games did not involve handling) were advocates of the forward pass. As a result of these schools' enthusiasm for a "loose" offside rule, forward passing was not forbidden under the subsequent versions of the FA's rules and the original Cambridge rules off-side rule was introduced to the FA rules in 1867 [ [Marples, Morris (1954) A History of Football, Secker and Warburg, London] ] . An offside rule had not been specified in the 1863 rules and, presumably, these would have been decided between teams prior to matches.

Passing the ball continues in to this day in at least one of the traditional public school football games. Harrow football is a dribbling game in which the ball may be chipped into the hands of a teammate [http://www.zen20110.zen.co.uk/SportHistWeb/SPORTS%20HISTORY/BSSH/The%20Sports%20Historian/TSH%2015/bailey.html] .

ubsequent development of passing

Following the adoption of the Football Association of a "loose" off side rule (i.e. one that permitted the forward pass) in 1867, a number of people and places have been credited with the development of combination football.

C. W. Alcock

The earliest reference to the term "combination game" comes in 1874 by C. W. Alcock who states, "Nothing succeeds better than what I may call a "combination game"" ["Football: our winter game", Charles Alcock, London, 1874 ] Alcock was also the first soccer player ever to be ruled off side on 31 March 1866, confirming that players were probing ways of exploiting the new off side rule right from the start [http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/corshamref/sub/offhist.htm] . In 1866 goal kicks became exempt from the offside rule, clearly allowing the ball to be passed forward by the goal keeper to someone who would otherwise have been off side.

The Royal Engineers A.F.C.

Sir Frederick Wall who was the secretary of the Football Association from 1895-1934 states in his biography that the passing game was created by the Royal Engineers A.F.C. in the early 1870s [cite book |last= Wall|first= Sir Frederick|authorlink= |title= 50 Years of Football, 1884-1934|year= 2005|publisher= Soccer Books Limited|location= |id= ISBN 1-8622-3116-8] [Cox, Richard (2002) The encyclopaedia of British Football, Routledge, United Kingdom] ] [ [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Fhistory.htm History of Football ] ]

Lancashire

Certain Lancashire sides (for example Blackburn Olympic) have also been considered to be innovators of the early passing game.

cotland

The combination game was pioneered in Scotland by the famous Glasgow club Queen’s Park FC, one of the most influential club sides in the history of the game. The Queen’s Park combination game centred around a 2-2-6 formation with the players working together in pairs. Two full-backs played together in defence, two half-backs operated in midfield with six forwards dividing up into pairs covering the right wing, left wing and centre of the field. Queen’s Park were the first club to introduce association football to Scotland and would become known, north of the border, as the ‘senior’ or ‘premier’ club. They organised the first international match, which was played on 30 November 1872, and provided all of Scotland’s players from within its own membership. The club’s pre-eminent role in the development of the Association game in Scotland is also acknowledged through their decisive influence in the formation of the Scottish FA and Scottish Cup competition in 1873. As a club side which, from 1868 to 1872, had limited access to challenge matches they played regular internal games and experimented with both the playing rules and playing style. Towards the end of this period their innovative brand of combination football evolved.

It appears that the short passing style was introduced by Queen’s Park as a tactic to combat the superior weight and strength of the English players in the 1872 international and to counteract their traditional dribbling style of game. During the early 1870s the Football Association’s playing rules were rudimentary and heavy charging was common place making superior weight and power an important advantage. While Queen’s Park lined up in a 2-2-6 formation for the FA Cup semi final tie against Wanderers (played on 5th March 1872) specific evidence of passing was not reported in this match. The contrast in weight and in playing styles was noted, however, in a match report from the "Sportsman" newspaper: "The Scotch team were much inferior in point of weight to their antagonists, but for this defect they amply atoned by the energy of their play, which enabled them at the outset to surprise and rather overcome their opponents."

It is therefore the international match where the first specific reference to a passing game is recorded within the history of association football. The earliest contemporary reference, dating from 14 December 1872, appears in "The Graphic", a weekly illustrated newspaper published in London, and gives clear detail as to the opposing playing styles of the two teams:

Individual skill was generally on England's side, the dribbling of Kirke Smith, Brockbank, and Ottaway being very fine, while Welch, half-back, showed himself a safe and good kick. The Southrons, however, did not play to each other so well as their opponents, who seem to be adepts in passing the ball.

Testament to the combination style of football adopted by Queen’s Park in the game is given in an eyewitness account by Walter Arnott, who would himself become a leading player for Queen’s Park and Scotland during the 1880s and early 1890s. Writing in "Association Football and the Men Who Made It" (1906) Arnott gives a clear description of the historic event. Once again the difference in weight is mentioned.

The English team was by far the heavier one. Their forwards played an individual game, and were much faster than those on the Scotch side, whose forward work was done in pairs. What a treat it was to see Clegg or Ottaway getting their ball near their own goal, and making off at a great pace down the field, and only being robbed of it by someone in the last line of the Scotch defence! Then, again, to watch the great Jamie Weir — the prince of dribblers — and his partner, by splendid combination play rushing down the wing and centring the ball with great accuracy right into the goal-mouth.

It would appear that the Queen’s Park players, unable to match their opponents individually for strength, paired up to stop the dribbling runs of the England players when defending their own goal and played short passes on the run when attacking their opponent’s goal. This can be found in the "North British Daily Mail" article of 2 December 1872 which alludes to the team work of the Queen’s Park players when defending:

Once the goal was only saved through the combined efforts of Weir, Rhind, Wotherspoon, Leckie, and Ker, the last named passing all opponents and bringing the ball to midfield…

In the same article the Queen’s Park players are mentioned in pairs when attacking:

Rhind and Weir turned the tables and passed the English forwards, until Welch stopped their career. Weir and Leckie once more put the Saxon goal in danger. Greenhalgh, however, came to the rescue, and, after charging first one and then another, piloted the ball out of danger…

Through Queen's Park's influence the passing game developed into a general Scottish style of play and spread was spread throughout England by the celebrated 'Scotch Professors'.

pread of the game overseas

In 1894 soccer was taken to Brazil by Charles William Miller, a Brazilian of British descent. He had been sent to England for schooling and learned to play football whilst at Banister Court School in Southampton, Hampshire. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/southampton/footballfirst/scrapbook/charles_miller.shtml BBC - southampton Football First ] ]

References