United Kingdom - Ireland

Dec. 19 After the game there are free drinks for all. They are on the house at the Duke of William which won the Hood and which will keep it for a year. Haxey celebrates its 600 year old hood game? At Lincolnshire village of Haxey local people and visitors watched or took part in the 600-year-old Haxey Hood game, said to have originated in a whim of a lady of the manor, who when local yeomen had recovered the silk hood after a long chase in the wind, promised each of them land if they could invent a similar game to be played on every January 6th. It has been played every year since. The Committee of the Hood is composed of the Lord, two chief Boggins and 9 lesser Boggins whose job it is to see fair play. The Hood is sewn up in a long cylindrical shaped leather case and teams representing all the local Inns in the village fight for possession of it. The team which gets the hood to their pub first is the winner and that pub keeps the Hood in its possession until next year game. This year winner was The Duke William which game all the contestants free drinks after the Game. The action of the game closely resembles a rugger scrum and began in a field ankle deep in mud. Only the youngest and fittest can survive the Haxey Hood Game

Restrictions Only for United Kingdom

600-year-old Ankle Boggins Closely Composed Contestants Cylindrical Fittest Haxey Inns Invent Keeps Lesser Lincolnshire Originated Possession Promised Recovered Representing Resembles Rugger Scrum Sewn Similar Survive Teams Watched Whim Yeomen Youngest

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