This included four hat-tricks and
a four-goal haul in a 5-3 defeat
of Sheffield Wednesday at
Hillsborough. He scored at least
23 league goals in each of the
next four seasons, too!
In a revealing article titled
'The Art of Shooting', published
in September 1930, Hodgson
discussed the tricks of his trade.
“It is difficult to hold any hard and
fast rules when giving advice on
the art of shooting, because so
much depends on the particular
style of each individual forward
and on the manner in which he
prefers the ball to come to him,”
he explained.
“The first thing any young
footballer must do if he hopes to
become a great forward is learn
how to kick a still ball. It must not
be thought that hard shooting
is always the most effective.
As a matter of fact, the exact
opposite is needed if a goal is
to be scored. It is not always
advisable to try and break the
back of the net, for a placed shot
would likely enough have a much
more satisfactory return.
“The real art of shooting may be
summed up by saying that it is
the art of directing the ball, with
or without pace as the situation
may dictate, well out of reachof the defenders, especially the
rival goalkeeper.”
Gordon also tackled the
subject of aggression towards
the opposing goalie: “Then there
is the goalkeeper who dislikes
to be charged by an opposing
forward as it puts him off his
game. Now there is nothing
unfair about a good, healthy
shoulder-charge, and no reason
why you should not give him one
if he has hold of the ball.
“You may say: 'What has this
to do with shooting?' Well, to
my mind, anything that is going
to help you to get goals can
be written down as shooting,