Boys' Sports. From a woodcut published in 1659
1, Bowling stones. 2, Throwing a bowl at nine pins, 3. 4, Striking a ball through a ring, 5, with a bandy. 6, Scourging a top with a whip, 7. 8, Shooting with a "trunck" or a bow, 9. 10, Going on stilts. 11, Tossing and swinging on a "merry-totten".
It is only within the last forty years that football has become popular. Football of some kind has been played for many centuries, especially in the streets of towns. Kingston, Chester, and Dorking, amongst other places, have a custom of playing football on Shrove Tuesday. The story as to how the custom arose is the same in most of these places.
Far back in the ninth century a party of Danes ravaged the district and attacked the town. The townsmen made a brave stand against them till help came. Then the Danes were defeated, their leader slain, his head struck off, and kicked about the streets in triumph. That is said to have given rise to the custom; but it was a very ghastly football.
Diagrams of Layouts
for a Boy's Game
Football was not always regarded with favour. Folk often wanted to play football when their lords and masters wanted them to practise shooting with their bows and arrows; but they were frequently told what a dangerous game it was, and over and over again it was forbidden. Football was always apparently a game over which the players fell out, much as they do now. Nearly four hundred years ago a worthy gentleman wrote of the game:—