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Fives is a British sport believed to derive from the same origins as many racquet sports. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The following is a list of Sports, divided by category There are many more sports to be added In fives, a ball is propelled against the walls of a special court using gloved or bare hands as though they were a racquet.

Contents

Background

The name may be derived from the slang expression "a bunch of fives" (meaning a fist). Slang is the use of highly informal Words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's Dialect or Language. The game has also been known as hand-tennis and historically was often played between the buttresses of church buildings in England. A buttress is an architectural structure built against (a counterfort) or projecting from a Wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland 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. For more information on this topic see Senior Hardball Singles or Senior Softball Singles. American (or court) handball, usually referred to simply as Handball, is a Sport in which players hit a small rubber ball against one or more

Fives is not the same as Long Fives, which is played in a real tennis court. Real tennis is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis or Tennis, is descended

Types of Fives

There are two main types of fives, Rugby Fives and Eton Fives. Rugby Fives is a handball Game, similar to squash, played in an enclosed court 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 A variant on Rugby fives is Winchester Fives, although there are only 9 places in the UK where this is still played [1].

Eton Fives

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. Eton College, or just Eton, is a world-famous British Independent school for boys founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. 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, which is known as a pepper or a pepper pot to fives players, on the left-hand side of the court in line with the step. This extends approximately 80cm into the court and is around 2m high. The first courts at Eton were built in 1840 and the rules for Eton Fives were first published in 1931. Year 1840 ( MDCCCXL) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Eton Fives has a more complex variation and some specific court features or "hazards". 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

Rugby Fives

Rugby Fives, developed at Rugby School, is played in a four wall court (quite similar to a squash court). Rugby Fives is a handball Game, similar to squash, played in an enclosed court Rugby School, located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, is a Co-educational Boarding school and one of the oldest public schools Squash is a racquet sport that was formerly called squash racquets, a reference to the "squashable" soft ball used in the game (compared with the 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. A varsity match is a sporting fixture between two University rivals

Winchester Fives

A further variation is Winchester Fives which differs again by the addition of a buttress (resembling the tambour of a real tennis court) on the left-hand wall - something also found in Eton Fives. Winchester College is a well-known boys' Independent school, and an example of an English Public school, in the city of Winchester in Hampshire Real tennis is the original racquet sport from which the modern game of lawn tennis or Tennis, is descended

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. Clifton College is a Coeducational public school in Clifton Bristol, England. In Clifton Fives if the ball bounces out of the back of the court, a 'let' is played.

Dauntsey's Fives

This variant was co-created by Will Newel and Matthew Young. Dauntsey's has no fives courts as such, so natural locations are used (similar to the games origin at Eton). The courts front wall has many 'planes' to it and therefore the ball if often sent in random directions making it a highly energetic game.

The reigning undefeated champion of Fives is Will Newel with Matthew Young close behind in the rankings! Other players include Head Boy Nick Ratcliffe, Chris Edmonds, Jonnie Broad and Chris Wilson. These make up the elite of this variant.

The game is predominately played by Mercers House.

Players

Fives is a small sport played by enthusiasts numbering perhaps 4,000 active adult players in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A similar number play in schools.

About forty schools are affiliated to the Eton Fives Association (the governing body of the Eton Fives variation), and there are a number of Old Boys' and university clubs. There are some well-established clubs overseas, such as the Zuoz Fives Club in Switzerland, and the game is also vigorously pursued in northern Nigeria. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal

The Rugby Fives Association (the governing body of Rugby Fives, founded in 1927) has affiliations from over forty schools and thirty-two clubs, from Edinburgh to Tavistock, and there are also a number of clubs overseas, for example in South Africa and the United States. Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Edinburgh ( ˈɛdɪnb(ərə Dùn Èideann) is the Capital of Scotland and is its second largest city after Glasgow. Tavistock is a Market town within West Devon, England on the River Tavy, from which its name derives and has a The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Early match

The first match on record between schools was when an Eton pair played at Harrow in 1885 (F. Eton College, or just Eton, is a world-famous British Independent school for boys founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. Year 1885 ( MDCCCLXXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Thomas and C. Barclay of Eton beat E. M. Butler and B. R. Warren of Harrow).

Today

Although the image of Fives has been dominated by the well-known eponymous public schools, courts do exist at state schools, and in recent years many of these have been brought into full use. The advantages of economy of space and low playing costs (ball and gloves) make it an attractive sport for schools. Fives continues to develop in England and has started to attract interest from the wider community [2]. In the United States the only known Fives courts are at Groton School, the St. Mark's School, and the Union Boat Club in Massachusetts.

There are also numerous championships, notably the (doubles) Eton Fives Kinnaird Cup and the Rugby Fives Open Singles championship (The Jesters' Cup) and Open Doubles championship (The Cyriax Cup). There are many other Rugby Fives Tournaments. Rugby Fives is a handball Game, similar to squash, played in an enclosed court

Notable players in recent times have included:.

External links

References

  1. ^ RFA Website - Where to play.
  2. ^ The Daily Telegraph Article. Retrieved on 2008-03-21. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 630 - Byzantine emperor Heraclius restores the True Cross to Jerusalem.

Dictionary

fives

-noun

  1. plural of five
  2. (mostly UK) a ball game, somewhat like tennis, played against a wall
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