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Tactics - 1998 Midfield Four


plastic_bas

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My first season as a season ticket was the Glorious 1997/1998 campaign. I loved every minute but being only 10 years old some of the finer points of the game were lost on me. I was thinking about that side recently and I'm hoping some of the older posters can help explain the workings of that great midfield four.

 

In my head it's like this:

 

McCann Fulton Salvatori Cameron

 

 

 

McCann was obviously an out and out winger, but I always remember Cameron as central player. Was he played out on the right hand side or did he play through the middle? If so wasn't our right hand side a little exposed (particularly as right full back wasn't our strongest area that season)?

 

I also remember Salvatori being a very disciplined tackler who very rarely pushed forward but Fulton was hardly a 'number 10' style advanced playmaker or even a box to box player. Who provided support to the front two? Was it left to the wide men?

 

The Aberdeen game this season is what first got me thinking about this. In terms of personnel it's a very similar make-up with Driver, Taouil, Barr and Stevenson taking up the respective roles. While that was one of our better performances this season, I still think that midfield is unbalanced. Is that just down to the lower quality of the players? Or is their a tactical difference between the teams?

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Winston Ingram

My memory of that was more 4-3-3.... Rousset- McPherson, Weir, Ritchie, Pointon- Cameron, Salvatori, Fulton (who played very narrow as a midfield, pardon the Fulton pun)- McCann, Hamilton, Adam

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not just a game

There was a massive imbalance to the team that year but it worked.

 

It was almost a 4-3-1-2 that we played but the one was McCann who was played on the left. This formation worked because we had a player with a great engine in Cameron who could go box to box, cover wide when needed and supplemented by the intelligence of Salvatori who was able to take up great positions to cover any gaps. We never really played with an attacking right full back either so were never exposed down that side.

 

Also not to be understated was the importance of Adam in this system, probably the best Hearts forward of my time at running the channels and dragging opposing central defenders into wide areas thus creating space for Cameron to attack. It also helped that this was the season that Steve Fulton decided to screw the nut and get himself fitter than he ever had been.

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Caspian Primrose

There was a massive imbalance to the team that year but it worked.

 

It was almost a 4-3-1-2 that we played but the one was McCann who was played on the left. This formation worked because we had a player with a great engine in Cameron who could go box to box, cover wide when needed and supplemented by the intelligence of Salvatori who was able to take up great positions to cover any gaps. We never really played with an attacking right full back either so were never exposed down that side.

 

Also not to be understated was the importance of Adam in this system, probably the best Hearts forward of my time at running the channels and dragging opposing central defenders into wide areas thus creating space for Cameron to attack. It also helped that this was the season that Steve Fulton decided to screw the nut and get himself fitter than he ever had been.

 

1st sentence is spot on.

 

I always thought of it as a 4-3-3. what a team that was. probably my favorite of all time. mind goin to some games when we were a goal or two down and I didnt even care because I knew we'd still win. what a luxury!

 

the cup final win at the end of the season is still the best day i've ever had as a Hearts supporter. I was 16 and seeing the emotions of the older jambos and what it meant to everyone is something i'll never ever forget.

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It was simple.....we had a central 3 of Fulton , Salvatori and Cameron....McCann had the stamina to work up and down the left as our wide threat and got back to defend......you had any combo of Adam, Flogel or Hamilton up top with Robbo makng cameos......some people forget we played some cracking football that season results aside...on a par with 06 at times.

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It was simple.....we had a central 3 of Fulton , Salvatori and Cameron....McCann had the stamina to work up and down the left as our wide threat and got back to defend......you had any combo of Adam, Flogel or Hamilton up top with Robbo makng cameos......some people forget we played some cracking football that season results aside...on a par with 06 at times.

 

The team of 97/98 was the sum of all the individual parts and it woked fantastically for the most part. We ran out of steam in the last few weeks of the league campaign but that day in May was above all the time when we realised that being the bridesmaid was not always out lot in life.

 

I reserve a special mention for Salvatori who went about his business quietly and efficiently and a bit of an unsung hero in my eyes

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I always thought that JJ had decided to play more cagily in that game - Walter Smith always loved to sit in and be attacked, and then punish teams on the break.

 

As it turned out we got the earliest of goals, and that fell in nicely with the plan.

 

That remains my all time favourite Hearts game (somehow it was inevitable that we'd let a goal in and have a nervous last 15 minutes, despite being well on top in the match). Still remember the entire day - up to and including getting on the bus with my Dad and neither of us being able to tell the driver where we lived. It did come back to us eventually.

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There was a massive imbalance to the team that year but it worked.

 

It was almost a 4-3-1-2 that we played but the one was McCann who was played on the left. This formation worked because we had a player with a great engine in Cameron who could go box to box, cover wide when needed and supplemented by the intelligence of Salvatori who was able to take up great positions to cover any gaps. We never really played with an attacking right full back either so were never exposed down that side.

 

Also not to be understated was the importance of Adam in this system, probably the best Hearts forward of my time at running the channels and dragging opposing central defenders into wide areas thus creating space for Cameron to attack. It also helped that this was the season that Steve Fulton decided to screw the nut and get himself fitter than he ever had been.

 

A good summary there. Thanks for that. We were very lucky to have such an intelligent group of players who could play that system successfully. Would pay anything to watch that side again now I have a greater understanding of the game.

 

Our striking problems are well known but the lack of a football brain the middle of the park is probably just as big a problem. It's all about decision making and I think our midfield often push up or sit back at the wrong times. For all of his hard graft, Barr is the worst offender for me. Oh to have Salvatori in our midfield again.

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Midfield players in the 1998 Scotland World Cup squad

 

Burley, Lambert, Collins, Jackson, Gemmill, Billy McKinlay. Plus the likes of McNamara and Donnelly.

 

Fulton and Cameron should both have been there. Fulton was wonderful to watch that season.

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not just a game

 

 

 

A good summary there. Thanks for that. We were very lucky to have such an intelligent group of players who could play that system successfully. Would pay anything to watch that side again now I have a greater understanding of the game.

 

Our striking problems are well known but the lack of a football brain the middle of the park is probably just as big a problem. It's all about decision making and I think our midfield often push up or sit back at the wrong times. For all of his hard graft, Barr is the worst offender for me. Oh to have Salvatori in our midfield again.

 

Agree with your comments about Barr; for me he is not a midfield player. Our main problem this year is we have nobody in midfield who is able to get in front of the ball so we have minimal threat from that area. None of the midfield have the vision or are capable of defence splitting passes which makes it easy for teams to sit in against us.

 

Going back to 97/98 we had Fulton and Cameron who filled these two roles perfectly

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Fulton and Cameron should both have been there. Fulton was wonderful to watch that season.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but did Craig Brown not state that there was no chance Fulton would make the squad in around January 1998. Shocking way to knock a player's confidence. I'm sure Fulton let himself go again after that.

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Baggio was brilliant didn't he score in the League Cup 4-3 game to?

 

1998 still eclipses the 5-1 for me. Well worth the wait!

 

We even managed that without Romanov... :10900:

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