Atherstone ball game.....wtf


The predecessor to football before the toffs moved in and made it more civil. We then used their rules and took the game back to the working class. You could argue now that its no longer a working mans game with how much a day at the match sets you back!
You could argue that that is a rather skewed view of what happened, with a classist slant. "Toffs moved in" and "we took it back".
You make it sound like a civil war.
 
Pre industrial revolution one of the roles of traditional football games was to act as a social safety valve (licenced disorder) so it's nice to see old traditions being upheld.
 
I've seen footage of the Sedgefield one.

There was a one mentioned on the radio a month or two back in think in Scotland. I think they said it was between the uppies and the downies and could go on for more than a day?

These things look like they're for absolute wrang uns.
Orkney. Was there a few years ago just before it. Was all the locals could talk about.
 
Atherstone is about 5 minutes drive from me. Shithole so no surprises to see a load of animals behaving like bell ends damaging property.
 
You could argue that that is a rather skewed view of what happened, with a classist slant. "Toffs moved in" and "we took it back".
You make it sound like a civil war.

The Etonians and others played a major part in regulating the game and taking it away from being a mass brawl. In the very early days it was still dominated by the educated or the higher classes, just look at the first couple of FA Cup finals. Its popularity grew so much and so quickly that the teams from working class areas wanted to pay players and the likes of the Etonians opposed it, saying that the game should remain recreational and 'Gentlemanly'.

The popularity and growth was so steep in working class areas that eventually the Football League was formed and the likes of the Etonians were shouted down.
 
The Etonians and others played a major part in regulating the game and taking it away from being a mass brawl. In the very early days it was still dominated by the educated or the higher classes, just look at the first couple of FA Cup finals. Its popularity grew so much and so quickly that the teams from working class areas wanted to pay players and the likes of the Etonians opposed it, saying that the game should remain recreational and 'Gentlemanly'.

The popularity and growth was so steep in working class areas that eventually the Football League was formed and the likes of the Etonians were shouted down.
There you go mate.
The first paragraph is actually what happened. Your original "Toffs moved in" quote makes it sound like a class war, which it wasn't.
And the evolution of the game brought it to the masses, as is recorded, but your assertation that "the likes of The Etonians were shouted down", is again based on your classist viewpoint. The game simply grew exponentially. Nothing to do with class.
 
There you go mate.
The first paragraph is actually what happened. Your original "Toffs moved in" quote makes it sound like a class war, which it wasn't.
And the evolution of the game brought it to the masses, as is recorded, but your assertation that "the likes of The Etonians were shouted down", is again based on your classist viewpoint. The game simply grew exponentially. Nothing to do with class.
It was all about creating a fitter work force for the upper classes while the sport was updated from a rural event to an urban event. It was a kind of class war to be fair even if that war was a primarily unconscious one.
 
There you go mate.
The first paragraph is actually what happened. Your original "Toffs moved in" quote makes it sound like a class war, which it wasn't.
And the evolution of the game brought it to the masses, as is recorded, but your assertation that "the likes of The Etonians were shouted down", is again based on your classist viewpoint. The game simply grew exponentially. Nothing to do with class.

They did oppose professionalism, thats fact. The game continued to grow along the same path forged by the teams from working class areas to the stage where the point they were making in the first place became redundant and the game continued to follow the 'working class' route. The Etonians et al were the minority with football as other 'upper class' sports still maintained more popularity, such as Rugby or Cricket.

You have an issue about how I've phrased things but the point I'm making is absolutely bang on the money.
 
They did oppose professionalism, thats fact. The game continued to grow along the same path forged by the teams from working class areas to the stage where the point they were making in the first place became redundant and the game continued to follow the 'working class' route. The Etonians et al were the minority with football as other 'upper class' sports still maintained more popularity, such as Rugby or Cricket.

You have an issue about how I've phrased things but the point I'm making is absolutely bang on the money.
I forget the match but The Times reported on a FA Cup Final bemoaning the fact that the underdog working class team beat a snobby team (for want of a better word) by employing unfair tactics such as coaching tactics rather than just kick 'n' rush and training. The Times called it the death of football.

Pretty much bang on.
 
I forget the match but The Times reported on a FA Cup Final bemoaning the fact that the underdog working class team beat a snobby team (for want of a better word) by employing unfair tactics such as coaching tactics rather than just kick 'n' rush and training. The Times called it the death of football.

Pretty much bang on.

Blackburn were the first to beat any of the 'upper class' sides and as you remark it didn't go down well.

1883 FA Cup final - Wikipedia
 
They did oppose professionalism, thats fact. The game continued to grow along the same path forged by the teams from working class areas to the stage where the point they were making in the first place became redundant and the game continued to follow the 'working class' route. The Etonians et al were the minority with football as other 'upper class' sports still maintained more popularity, such as Rugby or Cricket.

You have an issue about how I've phrased things but the point I'm making is absolutely bang on the money.
Ok
 
My house is there and I'm away. Been watching my Ring doorbell just in case the ball game comes up my street. Seems to be a couple of miles away at the minute, with three hours left to play.
When we visited Canada last year we showed our relatives a video of the ashbourne match, plus the cheese rolling In Gloucestershire. They were very impressed.

Have you ever taken part? Are you and upper or a downer?
 
When we visited Canada last year we showed our relatives a video of the ashbourne match, plus the cheese rolling In Gloucestershire. They were very impressed.

Have you ever taken part? Are you and upper or a downer?

Only moved there last year, and we're away for the winter. Already know all about it, because the town is steeped in ball game heritage. Might have a go next year.

Your team is determined not by where you live but whether you were born north (Up'ard) or south (Down'ard) of the brook. Having been born in Sunderland, I'm an Up'ard ('The posh boys'). My wife was born in Tamworth, so is a Down'ard.

(The closing minutes are currently on Twitter - Shrovetide Live.)
 
Only moved there last year, and we're away for the winter. Already know all about it, because the town is steeped in ball game heritage. Might have a go next year.

Your team is determined not by where you live but whether you were born north (Up'ard) or south (Down'ard) of the brook. Having been born in Sunderland, I'm an Up'ard ('The posh boys'). My wife was born in Tamworth, so is a Down'ard.

(The closing minutes are currently on Twitter - Shrovetide Live.)
How do you win?
 

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