The soccer team's season opener with Tufts at 3 p.m. today will mark two firsts in the almost two decades Bruce Munro has coached the Crimson booters: the traditional 5-3-2 alignment has been abandoned in favor of a defensively stronger 4-3-3, and the team's home field has been shifted from the Business School side of Harvard St. to the field adjoining the hard tennis courts.
The field and the system may be new, but there will be an encouraging number of old faces on the playing field, led by Captain Rich Hammond in the goal.
The four-man forward line will feature Jim Saltonstall, two-time All-Ivy, at right inside; Dudley Blodget, last year's Ivy assist leader, at right wing; junior letterman Lutz Hoeppner at left inside; and sophomore standout Scott Robertson at left wing.
The first three are established players; but Robertson will have added pressure on him because he is replacing Charlie Njoku, last year's top League scorer, who isn't playing soccer this fall.
The halfback line will revolve around All-Ivy Andy Kydes, who has moved to the vital center half position. Flanking Kydes will be junior Joe Gould on the right and senior Ken Mallory on the left, both of whom saw some varsity action as halfback reserves last year.
The success of the 4-3-3 as an offensive setup will depend largely on the ability of the wing halfbacks to work with the forwards and score goals from the flanks.
It was the defense, however, which cost Harvard the Ivy League title last fall, and the fullback line has gone from an erratic one last year to a huge ques- tion mark as the opener approaches.
Tony Marks and Al Lunkenheimer, last year's regular fullbacks, both return; but Lunkenheimer is out for a week with a sprained ankle, and Marks will be playing the newly-created position of sweeper, soccer's version of the free safety.
Junior Dave Wright will be at right full, and sophomore Hillory Worthen will be in Lunkenheimer's left fullback slot. Both Wright and Worthen are greener than the beaten-up field, but unlike last season, a mistake by the fullback won't mean an automatic goal, because Marks theoretically, will be there to back the play up.
Hammond, a take-charge goalie, moves out of the goal well and should be one of League's best.
Tufts, today's opponent, boasts its strongest team in ten years, and could challenge the Crimson which, according to Munro, is not yet ready to open with an unfamiliar system.
But Harvard has so many good players it could play mob soccer and win today; it won't be until the next two games, with Amherst and Williams, that an evaluation of the 4-3-3, and with it Harvard's chances in the Ivy League race, will be possible.
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