Fives is a
British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet
sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special
court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.
The game has also been known as hand-tennis and historically was often
played between the buttresses of church buildings in England.
Although the etymology of "fives" is still obscure, players have come
to accept that the word means the fingers of the hand acting in unison
as in a "bunch of fives". The word was not used before the 17th
century, but long before that the game was being played. Richard
Mulcaster the 16th century headmaster of Merchant Taylor's School, had
this to say: "The little hand ball whether it be of some softer stuffs,
and used by the hand alone, or of some harder, and used with rackette
.... against a wall alone, to exercise the bodie with both the handes
in everie kind of motion." Handball the Irish game, has kept a softer
ball, fives has not.
By the 18th and early 19th centuries fives was constantly recorded. Dr
Johnson was hazy about the matter - "a kind of play with a bowl" the
Dictionary said - but Parson Woodforde played in the churchyard at
Babcary - buttresses made for good angles and, in prodigal fashion,
betted on the result. Hazlitt wrote ecstatically about Jack Cavanagh's
play, and Lord Torrington, that matter-of-fact observer, referred to
the fives playing men and boys of Oswestry who "batter the church
walls".
There are links between Fives and the Irish and North American handball
games and indeed, in recent years, British clubs have begun to
establish ties with clubs in those countries.There are two main types
of fives, Rugby Fives and Eton Fives. A precursor to Rugby Fives is
Warminster (or Wessex) Fives; another variant of Wessex fives is
Winchester Fives, although there are only 9 places in the UK where this
is still played. Most schools where fives is played have only one type
of court but three schools have historically had both Eton and Rugby
courts - Cheltenham, Dover and Marlborough. Cheltenham now only have
Rugby courts and Dover two unrestored Eton courts; Marlborough have
four of each in good condition. As We researched for this site it
became obvious that many fives courts were either in disrepair or
hardly used. Many schools with fives facilities do not even mention
them and even the lovely Bank of England Sports Ground left it off it's
website- a telephone call had to be made to ascertain if the Courts
were there and in use- thankfully they were.
WALLS IN WESSEX
Warminster
Fives
is likely to be the same game as Wessex Fives, which originates some
centuries ago, when men and boys used the buttresses and walls of a
church and hit the ball with their hands against the walls - the angles
of the buttresses and walls lending variety to the game. It might then
have been a game played as singles or doubles. Wessex Fives was played
in the West Country against the walls of
inns and more frequently, church towers, where the glaziers were often
called in, it seems, to repair the stained glass windows. In 1754, the
Bishop of Bath and Wells ordered the game of Fives should cease to be
played against church towers as undoubtedly over one hundred years
glaziers' bills were beginning to be felt with some pain by the
exchequer. In Wessex only a small following remains, mainly from
Winchester College who play what is now more commonly known as Winchester Fives. Below are some of the
older walls where Wessex Fives were played.
Shepton Beauchamp,Somerset
In the grounds of the former New Inn
Hinton St George,Somerset
Lord Poulett Arms in Hinton St George
Milborne Port,Somerset
Home to a unique double Fives court,
erected in 1847 by Sir William C. Medlycott, the local MP, "for the
health and amusement of the town
Anchor Inn
Fives Wall
Fives Court, Otterhampton,Sedgemoor,Somerset
Fives Court, Wiltshire
A Care Home owned by the Orders of St John Care Trust, whose address is
given as Fives Court, Angel Lane, Mere
Mere,Wiltshire
Site of a 19th-century Fives Wall.
Montacute church,Somerset Records
show that Fives was played against the tower of this church
All Saints Church, Wrington, Somerset
There
are many references to Fives being played against the church tower
here.
St Michael's Church, Milverton, Nr Taunton
It
is known that Fives was played up against the North wall of this church
Stoke St Mary, Somerset
There are records of Fives
being played against this church
tower as early as 1634
Fives Court Row, Bridport, Dorset
A
row of cottages on West Bay Road, known (for reasons unknown to the
RFA) as Fives Court Row.
Babcary Church, Nr Somerton, Somerset
References exist to Fives
being played in the churchyard at
Babcary as long ago as 1765
Fives at Shrewsbury School
VARIATIONS OF FIVES
There are
two main types of fives, Rugby Fives and Eton Fives. A precursor to
Rugby Fives is Warminster (or Wessex) Fives; another variant of Wessex
fives is Winchester Fives, although there are only 9 places in the UK
where this is still played. Most schools where fives is played have
only one type of court but three schools have historically had both
Eton and Rugby courts - Cheltenham, Dover and Marlborough. Cheltenham
now only have Rugby courts and Dover two unrestored Eton courts;
Marlborough have four of each in good condition. The Eton Fives
Association had forty affiliated schools, the Rugby Fives Association,
fifty, the EFA besides the Jesters (who naturally figure in both lists
since they were started as a Rugby Fives Club in 1928), has numerous
Old Boys' clubs and the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. The RFA
has fewer Old Boys' clubs but more universities, ten in fact, and three
or four other institutions of which the Bank of England and Manchester
YMCA have long fives histories. Nevertheless new courts are seldom
built, although Oxford University now has two new Eton fives courts.
Such success as fives enjoys, and it really is considerable among
players, is largely the result of fine records of the two Associations.
No minor games have ever had more devoted attention or better
organisation than have Rugby and Eton fives.
Eton
Fives
Eton Fives, one derivative of the British
game of Fives, is a hand-ball game, similar to Rugby Fives, played as
doubles in a three-sided court. The object is to force the other team
to fail to hit the ball 'up' off the front wall, using any variety of
wall or ledge combinations as long as the ball is played 'up' before it
bounces twice. The compact nature of the court and the speed at which
the ball can be hit leads to an entertaining game, in which both a
quick mind and agile feet are needed if you are to succeed. Eton Fives
is an uncommon sport, with only a few courts, most of them as part of
the facilities of the Public Schools in the United Kingdom (as well as
Wolverhampton Grammar School, St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar
School, the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, King Edward's School,
Birmingham and Queen Elizabeth's School for Boys)and Queen Elizabeth's
Grammar School Ashbourne; consequently, it is primarily the preserve of
their students and alumni. The only known court to be owned by a
private individual in the UK is on the Torry Hill estate in Kent.
St Olaves Grammar School, Lancing College and Summerfields Prep school
house the only indoor Eton Fives courts in England, with four courts
being part of an Eton Fives and Squash Court complex (consisting of
four top quality courts for both sports) at the former[citation
needed].
However, the first real public courts have recently opened in the
Westway sports centre in London's White City, marking a possible change
in fortunes for Eton Fives as a minor sport. Only a few courts exist
outside Britain, most notably at Geelong Grammar School in Australia
(the school is often referred to as the 'Eton of Australia'); there are
also courts in Geneva, Zurich, Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz, Switzerland, St.
Paul's School, Darjeeling, India and Malay College Kuala Kangsar,
Malaysia, and two brand new courts have recently been completed in the
South of France, in the village of Grillon, Provence.Eton Fives is
played competitively as a doubles game, as opposed to Rugby Fives,
which is played as both a singles and a doubles game. In Eton Fives the
ball is softer and lighter than in Rugby or Winchester fives, and the
gloves are fairly thin.
The Eton Fives court is modelled on
part of Eton College's
Chapel and is enclosed on three sides and open at the back. It has a
more complex variation and some specific court features or "hazards". A
small step splits the court into upper and lower sections, and sloping
ledges run horizontally across the walls, one of which forms the
"line". There is a large obstruction, known as a 'buttress', or a
'pepper' to fives players, on the left-hand side of the court in line
with the step. At the bottom of the buttress is the 'box' or 'pepper
pot'. The step extends approximately 80 cm into the court and is around
15 cm high. The first courts at Eton were built in 1840 and the Laws
for Eton Fives were first published in 1931.
It is most commonly believed to be derived from Wessex Fives, a game
played by Thomas Arnold, famous Headmaster of Rugby School, who had
played Wessex Fives when a boy at Lord Weymouth's Grammar, now
Warminster School. The open court of Wessex Fives, built in 1787, is
still in existence at Warminster School although has fallen out of
regular use.
An early mention of the game can be found in the novel Tom Brown's
School Days(1857) by Thomas Hughes. The author attended Rugby School
during the period when Dr. Arnold was Headmaster.
The game is played between two players (singles) or between two teams
of two players each (doubles), the aim being to hit the ball above a
'bar' across the front wall in such a way that the opposition cannot
return it before a second bounce. The ball is slightly larger than a
golf ball, leather-coated and hard. Players wear leather padded gloves
on both hands, with which they hit the ball.
Rugby Fives, developed at Rugby School, is played in a four wall court
(quite similar to a squash court). The four walls and floor are uniform
and contain no hazards such as in Eton Fives. The front wall has a
height of sixteen feet, sloping down about half way along to six feet
at the back.
The balls used in Rugby and Winchester Fives are fairly hard and hence
the gloves worn are thicker than those used in Eton Fives. Rugby Fives
has had an official varsity match between Oxford and Cambridge annually
since 1925.
The RFA is the governing body for the sport of Rugby Fives. The
association aims to promote the playing and coaching of Fives at
schools, universities and senior level, and throughout the community in
general. It does this by organising matches and tournaments throughout
the season and advising on – and wherever possible supporting
financially – the regeneration of facilities and provision of suitable
coaching and equipment to further the game's development across the
country.
GENERAL
SECRETARY:
Andy Pringle
66 Brayburne Avenue
Clapham
London SW4 6AA
M: 07760 172904
Warminster
Fives
A less well known, but possibly much older version of the game is
Warminster Fives, a game based on Wessex Fives which is thought to have
been played at Lord Weymouth's School, now Warminster School from as
early as 1787. It has even been claimed that Rugby Fives owes its
creation to the famous Headmaster Thomas Arnold who had first played
Fives when a pupil at Lord Weymouth's.
Whilst an 1860 Warminster Fives Court still exists at Warminster
School, the game is rarely played in the area any more and the fine
details of the game are probably lost. The Warminster Fives Rules are
recorded in many locations including the Eton Fives Website.
Winchester Fives
A further variation is Winchester Fives. This variation differs by the
addition of a buttress which is a thin layer of concrete reaching to
the top of the court on the left-hand wall, although much smaller than
the one used in Eton Fives. The courts at Winchester and Radley
("proper" Winchester courts) have an 11-foot-high (3.4 m) back wall
which further differentiates the courts from the Rugby variety.
Clifton
Fives - and other variants
Some public schools have their own variation on the standard Rugby
Fives court - at Clifton College for instance, the court has a
half-height back wall. In Clifton Fives if the ball bounces out of the
back of the court, a 'let' is played.
Church
of St John the Baptist, Bishops Castle. Fives used to be played against
the wall of the tower, and the red line that acted as the 'bar' still
exists to this day.
Whitcliffe, near Ludlow, Herefords
Bowling
Green House - the former Ludlow Arms Inn, which has a 17/18th-century
Fives court in the garden.
Fives Court
A street in London,SE11
called 'Fives Court'
(Former) Musley School, Ware, Herts
One
19th century Fives court (apparently three-walled) on the site of the
former Musley School.
Shalford, Essex
A
stable block, part of which has apparently been converted into a Fives
court
St
Mary's Church, Craswall.Herefords
To the north of the church is a shallow
rectangular depression said to have been a Fives Court.
Westway, London
The 21st Century brings Fives back
Malvern College, Malvern, Worcestershire
Where the compilor of this page enjoyed many hours in the fives courts
in the 1950s
The
EFA Northern Tournament 2012
4th/5th February 2012 at Shrewsbury School
11:00am start
There will be a Main Tournament
and a separate Festival, both played over the whole weekend
If we have leftyou
out we are sorry but
just call us on
0207 183 4978 or Contact
us
Click & we will be pleased to
include you.
Real
Tennis Clubs in the UK
Real
tennis – one of several games sometimes called "the sport of kings" –
is the original indoor racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn
tennis (usually simply called tennis), is descended. It is also known
as court tennis in the United States, formerly royal tennis in
Australia,now real tennis, and courte-paume in France (a reference to
the older, raquetless game of jeu de paume, the ancestor of modern
handball and raquet games; many French real tennis courts are at jeu de
paume clubs).
The term "real" was first used by journalists in the middle of the 20th
century to distinguish the ancient game from modern "lawn" tennis (even
though that sport is seldom contested on lawns these days outside the
few social-club-managed estates such as Wimbledon). Real tennis players
often call the game "tennis", while continuing to refer to its more
widely played offshoot as "lawn tennis". There are many theories as to
the origins of tennis but many believe that the early form of tennis
can be dated back to the 11th century when monks used to play hand ball
around the cloisters of monasteries. The game gradually evolved to the
game of Real Tennis, and became very popular with the French and
British nobility. Henry VIII was a keen player and had the original
Real Tennis court built at his Palace at Hampton Court but Charles II
later re-modelled the court in the 17th century to the court that
exists today which is the oldest in Britain.
Real tennis is still played by enthusiasts or "realists" on 47 or some
say 49 existing courts in the United Kingdom, Australia, the United
States, and France. Despite a documented history of courts existing in
the German states from the 17th century, the sport evidently died out
there during or after the World War II reconstruction. The sport is
supported and governed by various organizations around the world. The
British Body is :
If we have left you out we are sorry but
just call us on
0207 183 4978 or Contact
us
Click &
we will be pleased to
include you Racket Courts and Evening clubs
Rackets
(British English) or Racquets
(American English) is an indoor racquet sport played in the United
Kingdom, United States, and Canada. The sport is infrequently called
"hard rackets," possibly to distinguish it from the related sport of
squash (formerly called "squash rackets").
Rackets began as an
18th century pastime in London's King's Bench and
Fleet debtors prisons. The prisoners modified the game of fives by
using tennis rackets to speed up the action. They played against the
prison wall, sometimes at a corner to add a sidewall to the game.
Rackets then became popular outside the prison, played in alleys behind
pubs. It spread to schools, first using school walls, and later with
proper four-wall courts being specially constructed for the game. Some
historians assert that the game was codified through its popularity at
the Harrow School in London, where it was played as early as the second
half of the 18th century. The central Body for Rackets is:
If we have leftyou out we are
sorry but
just call us on
0207 183 4978 or Contact
us
Click & we will
be pleased to
include you
THE
COURTS CIRCULAR
If you are a little tired of the
more traditional racquet sports such as tennis and squash. You might be
interested in give a new racquet game a go called 360ball.
360ball is played
in a circular court where players use a racquet to strike a ball onto a
centrally placed concave disc. The court has no separate sides and
players pivot 360 degrees around the disc as directed by play. t’s kind
of like table tennis, kind of like squash, and looks like it would
definitely be a good workout – it’s 360ball, a new racquet sport out of
South Africa. Games are played on a circular court by two players, or
two teams of two players, who are situated around a central concave
deflecting disc. Players hit the ball into the disc, trying to do so in
such a way that when it bounces out, their opponent(s) won’t be able to
reach it. Unlike tennis, say, there are no designated sides on which
players have to remain. Instead, everyone is allowed to move 360
degrees around the disc as play dictates ... hence the name.
To make things a little trickier, each player or team must hit the ball
twice before it returns to the disc. In the case of a single player,
this means that they have to hit the ball up into the air upon
receiving it, then follow through with a second stroke to send it back
to the disc. In a doubles game, the team member who receives the ball
must pass it to their partner, who then shoots it into the disc.
There are two versions of 360ball, court and pitch. The court game sees
the disc and hard-topped playing area enclosed by a tall circular wall,
which can be utilized by the players for rebound shots. To play the
pitch game, players simply plop the disc down on the grass, beach or
gym floor, and have to chase after the ball if they miss it.
The game sets are not yet available for purchase, as the creators of
360ball are still looking for investors to grow their business.
Hopefully it will hit the shelves soon, as it appears to be a lot of
fun – it also looks like it might involve a lot of collisions between
players, but then again, that could be part of the fun.
Eton Fives, one derivative of the British
game of Fives, is a hand-ball game, similar to Rugby Fives, played as
doubles in a three-sided court. The object is to force the other team
to fail to hit the ball 'up' off the front wall, using any variety of
wall or ledge combinations as long as the ball is played 'up' before it
bounces twice. The compact nature of the court and the speed at which
the ball can be hit leads to an entertaining game, in which both a
quick mind and agile feet are needed if you are to succeed. Eton Fives
is an uncommon sport, with only a few courts, most of them as part of
the facilities of the Public Schools in the United Kingdom (as well as
Wolverhampton Grammar School, St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar
School, the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, King Edward's School,
Birmingham and Queen Elizabeth's School for Boys)and Queen Elizabeth's
Grammar School Ashbourne; consequently, it is primarily the preserve of
their students and alumni. The only known court to be owned by a
private individual in the UK is on the Torry Hill estate in Kent.
The Eton Fives court is modelled on
part of Eton College's
Chapel and is enclosed on three sides and open at the back. It has a
more complex variation and some specific court features or "hazards". A
small step splits the court into upper and lower sections, and sloping
ledges run horizontally across the walls, one of which forms the
"line". There is a large obstruction, known as a 'buttress', or a
'pepper' to fives players, on the left-hand side of the court in line
with the step. At the bottom of the buttress is the 'box' or 'pepper
pot'. The step extends approximately 80 cm into the court and is around
15 cm high. The first courts at Eton were built in 1840 and the Laws
for Eton Fives were first published in 1931.
GENERAL
SECRETARY:
Fives is a
British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet
sports. In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special
court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.
The game has also been known as hand-tennis and historically was often
played between the buttresses of church buildings in England. 
Eton
Fives
Schools 
