It all kicked off yesterday, 2nd April 2010, as teams from across the globe gathered at the Greyhound Inn, Tinsley Green near Crawley, Sussex, for the British and World Marble Championships. Organised by the British Marbles Board of Control, the tournament has taken place in its current form since 1932, but it is thought to date back over 200 years.Played on a raised 6 foot diameter concrete ring covered in a thin layer of sharp sand, and conventiently located in the car park of the Greyhound, the aim of the game is to use a "tolley" (large glass ball 3/4" in diameter) to knock "marbles" (smaller glass ball 1/2" in diameter) out of the ring, with points scored for each one knocked out. There are some other rules as well which are highly intriguing and include the terms "cabbaging", "nose drop" and "fudging", and can be read about on the British Marbles website.The international nature of the event was reinforced by players from Germany, the USA and as far away as New Zealand. The Mayor of Crawley, Brenda Burgess, was also in on the game, playing for the international One Off Wonders team which included former American Marble Champion Debra Stanley-Lapic.Concentration was intense amongst those players who had taken rather more advantage of the pub's fine ales than normally recommended. Some friendly banter between teams was the order of the day, with the New Zealander Kyle McGowan of the Barrel Scrapers taking particular relish in taunting some innocent chaps from Romford.As the sun went down, Jen McGowan won the ladies final, Ian Gardner took the overall individual title, and the 1st Marble Club of Erzgebirge, Germany, led by Chris Pampel, took the team title.
