Dictionary Definition
fives n : a game resembling handball; played on a
court with a front wall and two side walls
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Pronunciation
- Rhymes: -aɪvz
Noun
fivesSee also
Extensive Definition
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.
Background
The name may be derived from the slang expression "a bunch of
fives" (meaning a fist). The game has also been known as
hand-tennis and historically was often played between the buttresses of church buildings in England. 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.
Fives is not the same as Long Fives, which is
played in a real tennis
court.
Types of Fives
There are two main types of fives, Rugby Fives
and Eton
Fives. A variant on Rugby fives is Winchester Fives, although
there are only 9 places in the UK where this is still played .
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. 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.
Eton Fives has
a more complex variation and some specific court features or
"hazards".
Rugby Fives
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.
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.
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.
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. 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.
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.
Early match
The first match on record between schools was
when an Eton pair
played at Harrow in
1885 (F.
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 . 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.
Notable players in recent times have included:.
- John Patrick Reynolds
- Brian Matthews (Old Citizens, Kinnaird Cup).
- Wayne Enstone (Manchester Y.M.C.A., Rugby Fives) setting a record of 23 National Rugby Fives Singles Titles, and over 140 tournament wins.
- Dave Hebden (Alleyn's and Cambridge) who recently won his 100th Rugby Fives tournament.
- Ian Fuller (Tonbridge).
External links
References
fives in German: Fives
fives in Simple English: Fives