OK, it's not really football as we know it, maybe a closer description would be something akin to rugby or gaelic football. Or, no rules rugby more like!

"Gameball", to give it its proper name, consisted of getting a ball into your opposing teams goals. Which might have been anything, a place, a house, a doorway, a gate, then next village even.

Er... That's it.

The only start would be getting a "neutral" person to throw the ball high into the air and then scarpering! After that the ball could be carried, kicked, passed, thrown, stuffed down hose...

The ball was the traditional pigs bladder stuffed with something fairly heavy. I've heard dried peas suggested but can't vouch for that. Nor surprisingly the ball regularly fell apart.

Obviously the game is seriously dangerous, really this was practice fighting as much as more ball moving so there were always injuries. In 1321 a papal dispensation was issued to a player who accidentally killed an oponent, so we know it goes back that far.

I've heard there is a version called "Kickball" played up to the 1600's which was feet only. I'm not sure how true this is or is it just wishful thinking?