A USEFUL LESSON IN THE REAL GAME OF LIFE

THE Field Game is totally exhausting. The point is you are not allowed to pass the ball, so you spend your entire time charging up and down in a group, trying to avoid being offside, or "sneaking" or "cornering" as the main offences are called.

Although Prince Harry is known to favour the even more mysterious and violent Wall Game, Prince William used to lead the ram in the Third Field, Eton's third Field Game team. It may have been the prospect of the second in line to the throne hurting himself which led to the rule change.

As I recall, no one was actually hurt in the ram.

We were all too much on the defensive. But it was clearly in contravention of European laws on safety in sport. Even in my day in the Sixties there were too few beaks who understood the rules properly and the game was umpired by other boys, often with little authority. It is supposed to encourage team cooperation, but it's real lesson in gamesmanship was finding out what you could get away with.

Copyright 2002
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