English public school football games

First, the evidence suggests that, during the 16th century, they transformed the popular, but violent and chaotic, "mob football" into organised team sports that were beneficial to schoolboys.

Second, many early references to football in literature were recorded by people who had studied at these schools, showing they were familiar with the game.

[2][page needed] The first direct evidence that games probably resembling football were being played at English public schools comes from the Vulgaria by William Horman in 1519.

[3] Even as early as 1519, Horman shows us that he was well aware of the value of sports to children's education and the need to temper their enthusiasm in order not to affect their studies: "There muste be a measure in gyuynge of remedies or sportynge to chyldren, leste they be wery of goynge to theyr boke if they haue none, or waxe slacke if they haue to many".

[4] This conflict was discussed further by Christopher Johnson, who was headmaster at Winchester in the 1560s, but it clearly remained a dilemma for public school masters right up to modern times.

Mulcaster's unique contribution is not only referring to "footeball" by its modern English name but also providing the earliest evidence of organised team football.

Mulcaster describes a game for small teams that is organised under the auspices of a referee (and provides clear evidence that his game had evolved from disordered and violent "mob" football): "Some smaller number with such overlooking, sorted into sides and standings, not meeting with their bodies so boisterously to trie their strength: nor shouldring or shuffing one another so barbarously ... may use footeball for as much good to the body, by the chiefe use of the legges".

[4] The earliest specific reference to football (pila pedalis) at university comes in 1555 when it was outlawed at St John's College, Oxford.

The original Latin is cited by Magoun (1938): Sortiamur partes; tu primum socium dilige; Qui sunt nostrarum partium huc se recipient; Quot nobis adversantur; Excute pilam ut ineamus certamen; Age, huc percute; Tu tuere metum; Praeripe illi pilam si possis agere; Age objice te illi; Occurre illi; Repercute pilam; Egregie.

Est pilae doctissimus; Asque eo fuisset, reportassimus vicoriam; Age, subservi mihi; Adhuc potiores habemus, scilicet partes.

The original word translated as "goal" is "metum", literally meaning the "pillar at each end of the circus course" in a Roman chariot race.

Contrary to press reports in 2006 there is no reference to game rules, marking players, team formations, or forward passing.

The next specific mention of football at public schools can be found in a Latin poem by Robert Matthew, a Winchester College scholar from 1643 to 1647.

[9] The earliest versions of any football code rules were written down in the early 19th century, most notably by Eton College (1815)[1] and Aldenham School (1825).

Thus the public school boys, who were free from constant toil, became the inventors of organised football games with formal codes of rules.

Neither date nor the variety of football played is well documented, but such claims nevertheless allude to the popularity of rugby before other modern codes emerged.

Football had come to be adopted by a number of public schools as a way of encouraging esprit de corps, competitiveness and keeping youths fit.

This kind of dribbling foot ball with a tight offside rule is still played today as the Eton field game.

A third group led by Westminster and Charterhouse pursued a game that excluded handling the ball but had a less restrictive offside rule.

Other schools (in particular Eton and Harrow) favoured a dribbling game with a tight off-side rule (such that all players must remain behind the ball).

By 1867 the Football Association had chosen in favour of the Charterhouse and Westminster game and adopted an off-side rule that permitted forward passing.

In addition, the introduction of the FA rules that allowed both dribbling and forward passing of the ball were instigated by former public school boys.

[2] These features of modern soccer had been integrated into the Football Association rules by 1867 and were the consequence of English public school games.

[54] It is uncertain if the drops and run-ins constituted what the author meant by "scientific", however it is made clear that this playing style was distinctly less "vicious" than in the past.

Passing the ball continues to this day in surviving traditional public school association football games.

This necessity, combined with the availability of sufficient time and money to pursue the sport, was the driving force that led to the creation of modern association football rules by people who had studied or taught at English public schools and universities.

Changing ends at half time (if no goals had been scored) was part of the following schools codes: Brighton, Eton, Rossall, Sheffield, Winchester.

The original use of the term "substitute" in association football was to describe the replacement of players who failed to turn up for matches.

[citation needed] The Sheffield rules instigated the throw in of the ball at right angles by the opposite side to the one that played it into touch.

The 1863 Cambridge Rules state that "In a match when half the time agreed upon has elapsed, the side shall change goals when the ball is next out of play".