Kydes Uses His Head to Spark Harvard Attack

"Kydes! Kydes!"

If you have been to a varsity soccer game this season, you've heard that voice from the top of the stands at Cumnock Field. In Macedonia soccer is the national sport, and Phil Kydes, responding to the cry of his father, brings the excitement of that Greek play to the Crimson forward line.

Kydes is the sparkplug of the Harvard attack. On throw-ins, from the sidelines, he is the man to watch. If a long, centering pass sails in from the corners, it is the sophomore inside forward who is staring down the goalies' throat. When Kydes turns at mid-field and starts toward the opposition, Harvard switches from defense to offense.

At the right inside position. Kydes' responsibility is to move the ball up from midfield to the forward wings. Frequently he will be back in the Harvard half of the field one moment breaking up an opponent's attack, and the next second he will be moving through the enemy defenders for a long lead pass.

Kydes' styles of play has had to change greatly since high school. "At Brian McMahon in Norwalk, Connecticut, everyone depended on me to score." he said. "In my junior year I set the Connecticut state record with 23 goals and the next season tied the national record with 31," he added as an aside.

"But at Harvard my role isn't to play up in front. When the play enters the penalty area. I fall back to pick up any loose balls that might be kicked back out," he said. An indication of his success this year is the fact that he leads the team with 10 assists.

Kydes is much more satisfied with his new style of play. "I've learned to concentrate on my passing. I don't have to dribble as much or worry about injuries as I did in high school." he said.

By far, Kydes' greatest asset is his amazing ability to create dangerous situations with head-shots. In all the Crimson's games this season. Kydes has demonstrated the best pinpoint accuracy with his head.

"Heading the ball was the first thing my father taught me," Kydes explained. "I remember spending hours just heading a ball against any wall. I still make sure I head the ball for a short while in every practice."

Kydes deserves the credit for inspiring the Crimson in last Saturday's big 3-1 victory over Penn. "Penn put out everything in the first 1? minutes of the game." coach Bruce Munro said. "When they didn't get a goal, they must have been asking themselves. What the hell do we have to do to score against them? That headed goal for us just knocked the wind out of them." he said

Unsure

"We weren't sure of ourselves at all going into that game." Kydes recalled. "We knew their defense and offense were both solid and we expected a tough game."

"The Quakers completely outplayed us in the beginning because we were just admiring their play." Kydes explained. "They didn't wait for the play; they rushed forward without waiting for the ball to come to them. That aggressive style of play made us overly cautious and did not let us play our type of game."

Test

"It was a great test for us, but we really got together for the first time this season in the second period." Kydes remembered. "This forward line is as good as any in the country."