Things You'll Need:
- Paper football
- Rectangular table
- Opponent
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Step 1
Find a table to use. A rectangular table works the best:something along the lines of a dining room table (no table cloth).
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Step 2
Partners, stand at opposite ends of the table.
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Step 3
Begin play. By sliding the paper football back and forth toward each other, not touching the football until it comes to rest each time. You can move the football with the side of your hand (as it lays flat on the table) or with your finger tips (either pressuring it from the top, or nudging it at its edge).
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Step 4
Becoming eligible to attempt a field goal. One manner in which you score (and in some versions of the game, the ONLY manner in which you score) is by kicking field goals. But first, you have to become eligible to kick them. You can become eligible to "kick" in two different ways. The most direct way is to succeed in dangling part of the football off the edge of your opponent's end of the table, while the football remains on the table. The other way occurs after your opponent sends the football over your end three times, landing it on the floor. So you want to dangle it on your opponent's end, but you don't want to send it off. It's better to come up short than to go over all the way.
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Step 5
Kick a field goal. Set the paper football on edge at your own end of the table by placing pressure on top of it with your fingertip (pretty much as the holder does in real football). So unlike the normal course of play, in which the football lies flat on the table, it's now upright. You can place it on one of its three points, or you can place it on one of its edges. Then flick it with a finger from your other hand.
The goal posts are made by your opponent, who places his/her two index fingers tip-to-tip, and forms the "goalposts" with his/her thumbs. You can use narrower goalposts if you like, reversing the roles of index fingers and thumbs. -
Step 6
Understand scoring variation one. A very simple way to score this game is to award a single point for each field goal. Each successful "field goal" is worth a point, and you can play to 10, or 21 if you have lots of time. But you can make the point total goal any number really.
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Step 7
Understand scoring variation two. A more complex (and realistic) method of scoring might go as follows. For each time you manage to land the football dangling off your opponent's edge of the table, this is a touchdown (6 points), and then you could kick an extra point (possibly being allowed to move closer to the opponent's end for these than you would for field goals). A regular field goal (awarded to you because your opponent sent the football all the way over your edge of the table 3 times) would be worth 3 points. You'd likely want to increase the point totaly you're "playing to" if you're scoring with these greater point awards.
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Step 8
Instead of playing "up to" some score, play for a prescribed period of time. This could be something like 15 minutes, or if you're at school, it could just be "until the bell rings".
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Step 9
Improvise other variations! Come up with a way for going for a two-point conversion instead of an extra point (maybe you move the ball closer to your opponent's end and are allowed one shot to dangle it). Come up with a way to score the rare but cool "safety" (2 points awarded to the "defense" without having to score a touchdown). Maybe if your opponent, in his or clumsiness, knocks the ball of his/her OWN end of the table, this could score a safety for you!
Comments
TxLady said
on 8/23/2008 Very interesting, Thanks!