better patent that shit bro . <| sep |> Back in the olden days , it used be that you ' d play it between two villages . As in , two whole villages would play and the goals would be some point in either village . Also , the rules basically amounted to ' try to avoid something that ' ll get you up in front of a justice of the peace next time one comes past ', which is why several English kings wanted to ban the whole thing it was crippling men who would otherwise have been good soldiers for fighting the FrenchScotsIrishWelsh . This was , of course , the grand extent of English foreign policy throughout the Middle Ages to the point where it was and possibly still is IIRC mandatory for every ablebodied male over the age of fourteen to attend weekly longbow practice , supervised by a local clergyman who was to provide ale or other suitable refreshments .