Obsolete - and new - football terms | Vital Football

Obsolete - and new - football terms

stokeimp

Vital 1st Team Regular
Yesterday I heard an interview, totally unrelated to football, in which the word “pivot” was used, and it took me back to a time when that term was used to refer to the Centre Half position. It has fallen into misuse, presumably since the 4 2 4 (or variance) came into fashion, and it got me thinking of other football terms that have become obsolete.

The corollary, I suppose, is that new expressions, not in use when many of us started watching football, have come into fashion

I’ve thought of a small number of both, but any ideas/suggestions?
 
On the subject of the centre half, they were once referred to as the 'stopper' - because they made sure no-one got past them

Nowadays it seems the goalkeeper gets called the 'stopper' - and it always confuses me!

Do goalkeepers still get called the 'custodian'? Or was that just a cliche anyway.

How about the centre forward being called the 'leader'? That wasn't because he was the captain (he rarely was) but because he 'led the line' - perhaps went back to the days of five forwards.
 
Slide-rule pass. Might still be used, but few youngsters will know what a slide-rule is.
 
Slide-rule pass. Might still be used, but few youngsters will know what a slide-rule is.

Commentators pretend they know, implying that it's a precision measuring device.

In fact, it's a multiplying/dividing device of moderate precision, often known as a "guessing stick".
 
Commentators pretend they know, implying that it's a precision measuring device.

In fact, it's a multiplying/dividing device of moderate precision, often known as a "guessing stick".

Indeed. My Dad had one as he was a draughtsman, so he used it quite a bit for work and showed me how to do basic calculations. I couldn't remember now how to use it, though.
 
Not so sure about old phrases, but sometimes new ones pop up that I do not understand. "Giving it limbs" for instance. What?
 
There was a period in the 80s when strikers were known as marksmen.

Also, the utility player doesn't seem to be a term used any more.
 
Lurker is probably a forgotten term, twinned here with Striker in 1958. Pivot was also used in the report.

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Interesting Bazzer. I certainly remember Tommy Tynan (Plymouth) and Trevor Senior (Reading) referred to in the written press as marksmen in the mid-80s. But I can't say I have heard it since.