The Field Game

And we’re back! Here’s to a happy and successful new term!

Unlike some of my friends, I’m a big fan of the Lent half. It may be unremittingly cold, dark and dank, but there are two features of it which set it apart. The first is the absence of trials at the end of term. The second is the Field Game.

Now, if you thought Eton was pretty ridiculous for inventing a sport and being the only school to play it (the Wall Game), then you may not be pleased to hear that it actually has two, the second being the Field Game!

For this reason you might think the sports were quite similar, but nothing could be further from the truth, for whilst the Wall Game is as dull as dishwater and practised by a select few, the Field Game is perhaps the greatest sport on earth and is played by everyone.

Unfortunately, a few loonies in each block don’t see it this way and prefer to play a sport that involves slapping a silly ball around a silly field with silly sticks. Frankly, they are probably girls trapped in boys’ bodies, but even if they are they must still play Field Game at least once or twice a term.

Explaining how the sport works to people who have never witnessed it before is notoriously difficult. Often it is reduced, for the sake of simplicity, to a catchy sound bite, such as ‘a cross between football and rugby’ or ‘football with scrums’. These rightly point out the truth that the Field Game borrows elements from both, but what these are requires further explanation. For this reason I listed the main ones below:

Football similarities:

• 11 players per team

• Played with a football (size 4)

• Pitch has goals at both ends (although smaller than standard football posts)

• Points are earned by scoring goals or winning corners (see explanation below)

• Handball is forbidden

• The rule on ‘sneaking’ is similar to offside.

Rugby similarities:

• Each side has 7 players in the ‘bully’ (like the scrum) and 4 ‘behinds’ (like the backs)

• The pitch has a halfway line, 22 equivalents and 3 metre lines.

• Breaks in play are generally restarted with a bully (there are two meanings of the word) which is when both sides’ bullies (confusing?!) come together in what resembles a scrum.

A goal that is scored through the posts is worth 3 points and a ‘rouge’ is worth 5. To score a rouge the ball must first become ‘rougeable’. This happens when the defending team touches the ball over their own goal line (‘winning a corner’) or when an attacking player charges down a ball that is kicked upfield by a defender. This second rule is far from watertight, since the charge down or ricochet off an attacker must be deemed an unconscious movement, which can be horrendously difficult for the referee to judge.

When a ball goes rougeable both teams sprint for the ball and try to touch it with their hands (the only situation in which handball is allowed). If the attackers win the race a rouge is awarded, but if not they are offered a choice between one point or an attacking bully on the 3 metre line. It is rare to see a team opt for a point, except in exceptional circumstances, since a bully on the 3 metre line can lead to a 5 point ‘bully rouge’, which is when the attacking side push the defenders over their own line whilst keeping the ball in the bully.

After a few minutes observation of a Field Game match it becomes apparent that different players on the pitch are subject to different rules. Importantly, no-one is allowed to roam indiscriminately, and the effect of this is that bully members from both sides are mixed in the middle with the behinds sandwiching them. 

Typically, the behinds have most possession of the ball and use it to gain territory by booting it upfield. The bully members on the same side give chase, hoping to tackle the opposition behinds before they can kick it back or even get there first if they are quick enough. In most cases the ball is returned, at which point the other side’s bully gives chase, and so the cycle is reversed and repeated. On occasions when the ball does land at the feet of a bully member, it is dribbled towards the opposition goal line with the aim of scoring a goal or a rouge.

If you still have no clearer idea of what a Field Game match looks like then you are far from alone. Every year hundreds of F blockers are equally oblivious, despite having listened to countless lectures from older boys on how the game works. Without exception, when they see it in the flesh for the first time they find it very different to what they had imagined. This was the case today when they all came to watch the first round of Senior League, the inter-house competition for B, C and D blockers. Afterwards played a practice game on the fields whilst receiving tuition from a knowledgeable beak or boy.

In fact, I'm glad I was not asked to help out with this because until today my understanding of the rules was very rusty. This happens to everyone after nine months of Field Game exile, causing the first match to be a battle of discipline – won by the team who concedes the fewest fouls.

Fortunately, our house today excelled in this department, and despite my best efforts to prevent us from winning by sneaking and playing the ball on the ground, we held on for a deserved victory.

My passion for the Field Game is not remarkable, a fact demonstrated by the hundreds of old boys who return each weekend to take on the school in matches. Only C and B blockers are eligible for these fixtures, so this year will be my first opportunity to get involved. The trials for the first games on Saturday are tomorrow, and although I'm a little nervous the large number of teams means I should squeeze in somewhere.

The Field Game is a fantastic sport in its own right, requiring a mixture of skill and athleticism, but what makes it stand out for me is the fact that no other schools play it. As a consequence, we are forced to play against each other constantly, which may sound repetitive but in reality is exhilarating. Playing up to three times a week alongside the guys you live next to creates an unbeatable team spirit and brings the house together. Heck,  I’ve even been known to high-five Runty on a couple of occasions!

The ultimate aim for each house is to win a competition, be it Ties, League or Non-Specs. Whether we will achieve this over the next few months remains to be seen. But what we can be certain of is there will be many thrills, the odd spill and the chance to make history along the way.