Games for the Playground, Home, School and Gymnasium Part 76

Only a hit from a ball on the fly counts. A hit from a bounce does not put a player out. If a ball touches any part of the clothing or person, it is considered a hit. If two players are hit by the same throw, only the first one hit is considered out. Players may dodge the ball in any way. The ball is returned to the circle players by a toss from one of the inner team, should it be out of reach of any player of the circle team.

If desired, the hit players may leave the game instead of joining the outer circle. This leaves the teams intact, and each then keeps a separate score.

If successive games be played, the teams change places, the inner players going to the circle, and _vice versa_. The game may then be played in innings if desired, each team to be given three minutes in the circle. One point is then scored against a team while in the center for every player hit, and the team wins which has the smallest score at the end.

DOUBLE CORNER BALL

_14 to 100 players._

_Gymnasium; playground._

_2 basket b.a.l.l.s._

This game is one of the comparatively few in which a large number of players may be kept actively engaged at the same time. The game was developed by Miss Caroline M. Wollaston of New York City, through whose kindness it is here given. There are practically two games going on at once, in which each player partic.i.p.ates in rotation.

GROUND.--The ground for this game should be outlined in a square measuring about forty by forty feet. In each corner is marked a small goal, the two goals at one end belonging to one team, say the Blues, and the two goals at the other end belonging to the opposing, or Red, team. Near the center are marked two small circular goals for the throwers of the different teams. The thrower for the Red team stands in the center goal farthest removed from the red corners; the thrower for the Blue team in the goal farthest removed from the Blue corners.

Two basket b.a.l.l.s are needed for the game.

TEAMS.--Any number of players, from fourteen to one hundred, may play.

These are divided into two teams. While it is advisable to have the two teams even in numbers, an odd player may be a.s.signed to either team.

Each team chooses its own captain. Each captain selects two goal keepers, players who can jump and catch well being best for this position. These two goal keepers are a.s.signed to goals at the same end of the ground, each being guarded by guards from the opposite team. If desired, a halt may be called during the game, and the goal keepers changed for others designated by the captain. This is sometimes desirable to rest players filling this arduous position, and sometimes for the purpose of distributing among the players opportunities for this kind of play.

The remaining players are guards, and are divided by the captain into two parties, one for each of the opponents' corner goals. The following method has been found to work quickly and well for this purpose: The captain lines up his players and numbers them, taking any number that he chooses for himself. Those having odd numbers are sent to guard one goal, and those having even numbers to guard the other goal. Each guard should remember well his number, as there is a constant rotation of players according to number.

[Ill.u.s.tration diagram: DOUBLE CORNER BALL]

OBJECTS OF GAME.--The first object of the game is for a thrower on the center base to throw a ball to one of the corner goal men of his own team; each ball so caught by the goal keeper scores. One very distinctive feature of this game is the fact that each guard becomes, in turn, thrower for his team.

Another object of the game is for the guards to prevent the corner goal men from catching the ball. This is not only for defensive play, to prevent the opponents from scoring, but has a positive value, there being a separate guard score, each ball that a guard catches and holds scoring for his team. This scoring for catches by the guards has the advantage of calling for especially active work from the guards, with much jumping in it, and leads to skillful play for catching the ball so as to hold it instead of merely touching it.

START.--The game starts with Number One of each team in his respective throwing base in the center, the guards being disposed in one or two ranks around the goals they are to guard. Each center baseman holds a ball, which he puts in play at the referee's whistle, or other signal, by throwing to one of the corner goal keepers of his team.

Each guard, as he becomes thrower, throws only to the corner on his side of the field. For instance, the guards bearing odd numbers being on the right side of the field, when player Number One throws from the center base, he will throw to the corner man on the right. Similarly, when player Number Two takes his turn at the throwing base, he will throw to the corner goal on the left-hand side of the field, as his party of guards are stationed at the left-hand side.

RULES AND POINTS OF PLAY.--The game opens with guard Number One in the center base, ready to throw the ball to the corner. Each thrower has but one throw at a turn, whether it be successful or not. Immediately that a thrower has tossed the ball, he steps back to his place among the guards, and the guard bearing the next number steps into the throwing base. The players must keep their own watch for turns to do this, and each should therefore observe at the opening of the game which guard bears the number next before his. This will be a player in the opposite division of guards of his team, as the odd numbers are guarding one corner and the even numbers another.

When each player of a team has thrown from a center base, the numbers begin over again in regular rotation. Thus, if Number Sixteen be the last thrower, Number One follows him.

Whoever catches a ball thrown to a corner, whether it be the corner goal keeper or one of the guards surrounding him, throws the ball immediately back to the center base, supposedly to the next player, who should have stepped at once to the base when the previous thrower left it. Should this next player not have reached the center base in time to catch the ball, he picks up the ball and throws it to the proper goal keeper; but it behooves a player to be at the center base in time to catch a ball returned from a corner, because every such catch scores.

A ball caught on the center base is, of course, a return ball from the corner to which a predecessor threw it, and must be a fair throw, whether sent by one of the opponents' guards or his own goal keeper.

It may make clearer the rotation of the play to ill.u.s.trate as follows: The game opens with Number One ready on the center base belonging to his team. His group of guards, that is, those bearing the odd numbers, are guarding the corner behind him on the right-hand side of the field. He therefore throws the ball on the referee's signal to the corner goal keeper for his team at the opposite end of the ground on the right-hand side. Immediately that he has thrown the ball, he steps back among his group of guards bearing the odd numbers, and Number Two of his team, who belongs to the group of guards on the left-hand side of the field, steps forward at once to the center base. Meanwhile, the ball may have been caught by the goal keeper to whom it was thrown, or by one of the guards surrounding him. It is at once tossed back to the center base from which it came, and Number Two guard should be there to catch it.

Number Two then throws the ball to the goal keeper for his team on the left-hand side of the ground. Whoever catches it at once throws it back to the same throwing base, and Number Three should be there to receive it, Number Two having returned to the ranks of his guards. So the game goes on, the guards each taking a turn at the throwing base, and each throwing the ball to the corner goal keeper on his side of the field.

Meanwhile, the same sort of game is being played by the opposite team, two b.a.l.l.s being in play at once, and each guard taking part in each game for each team, according as he is guard around an opponent's corner goal or a thrower from the center base to his own goal men.

Each goal keeper and thrower must keep one foot in his goal or base.

It is thus permissible for a goal keeper to step out of his goal with one foot, or lean far out of the goal to catch the ball. Of course the best kind of a throw to a goal keeper is a high curved ball that will go over the heads of the guards and fall within his goal. No guard may step within the goal he guards.

Violation of the rules about overstepping territory const.i.tutes a foul, and scores for the opposing team.

Very alert and rapid play is needed to make this game a success. As one team (Blues) may play faster than the other (Reds), it is not necessary that Number Six of the Red team and Number Six of the Blue team, for example, should be on the center throwing bases at the same time. The two games go on independently of each other.

FOULS.--The overstepping of boundaries in ways not allowed by the rules score one for the opponents.

SCORE.--A goal keeper scores one point for his team every time that he catches a ball which has not been touched by one of the guards around his goal. A ball caught by a goal keeper after being touched by a guard does not score.

In addition to the score made by goal keepers, a guards' score is kept, each player counting the number of b.a.l.l.s he catches and holds, no matter where he be standing, whether in his position as guard or in the center base from which he is to be thrower. Such a catch by a guard scores one point, the guards reporting their points at the end of the game. Touching the ball does not score under any circ.u.mstances.

It must be caught and held.

Fouls score for opponents, as stated under "Fouls."

The score for the game for either side is the sum of all of the b.a.l.l.s caught, according to the above rules, by the goal keepers and guards on that side. The game is usually played on time limits of from twenty to forty minutes.

For experienced players, scoring by guards may be omitted if desired.

The particular object of this feature is to encourage guards to expert work in catching the ball, instead of merely interfering.

DOUBLE DODGEBALL

(See _Dodgeball_)

[Ill.u.s.tration: DRIVE BALL]

DRIVE BALL

_10 to 30 players._

_Playground; gymnasium._

_Basket ball; volley ball._

This is one of the most interesting games for players beginning to care for team work. The writer has known some boys to play the game persistently for several seasons in succession.

GROUND.--A court measuring from thirty to fifty feet in length by twenty to thirty in width is divided into two equal parts, forming two courts, each of which should be a little wider than it is long. A goal about two by four feet is marked in the center rear of each court, within the boundary lines. It facilitates the game if the end of each court may be a wall or fence, and thus make sort of a backstop behind the goal.

Each court has bases marked at even distances over its surface, wherein the different players stand. These may be marked simply as a cross for a footmark, or a small circle or square. There is no particular arrangement for these, the only object being to scatter the players, no ma.s.s play being allowed in the game.