Swing-ball

Swing-Ball is a game requiring two teams of two players, a soccer ball and a set of park swings. One team's players sit on the swings, while each member of the opposing team stands on opposite sides of the swingset and attempt to pass the ball back and forth through the swingset without their opponents touching the ball. The team on the swing attempts to gain control and kick it past the other team's endline. Teams switch sides at halftime and the team with the highest combined score wins.

Rules

The game begins with a coin toss, with the winner deciding whether they wish to start the game on the swings or in the field. The players on the swings have the option of choosing whether to swing facing the same way or different, and whether to swing in sync or out of sync.

The team in the field begins with the ball. They earn a point each to they successfully pass the ball to each other through the swingset without the other team making contact with the ball. Each player is allowed just two touches of the ball - one to control and one to pass - or the ball is given to the team on the swings.

If the team on the swings gain control of the ball, the opposing team may only move parallel to their endline. The team on the swings will attempt to kick the ball, using the momentum of the swing, past the opposing player and across his endline. Doing so earns one point.

Teams switch positions at halftime. Thus, at the end of the game, both teams have a '"field score" and a "swing score." The side with the highest combined score is declared the winner.

Background and Critical Reception

Swing-Ball was invented in 2001 by a group based in Hawthorne, NJ. Its original goal was to be a soccer training aid to help learn dribbling and passing skills. However, the popularity of the game eventually made it branch off into its own, unique sport.

Swing-Ball received an increase in popularity in June of 2008, as it was featured and profiled on several "unusual sports" websites, including Montegue Blister's Strange Games and The Junkyard Sports Community . The latter of these applauded swing-ball for:

Incorporating what for soccer players would be deemed "junk" - a swingset, in this case - and using it as the pivotal, so to speak, focus of the game. This is the kind of thinking that transcends boundaries, that integrates the real world into the world of play, that engages new skills, and creates opportunities for the expression of excellence, and the frequently actually fun opportunity to fall off a swing.

The United Swing-Ball Association

The official governing body of swing-ball is The United Swing-Ball Association. It currently oversees and organizes all known domestic and international leagues.

The current board of directors consists of:

* Steve Battaglia
* David Boyd
* Joseph Contini
* Charles Lana
* Christopher Luecht
* Benjamin Meagher
* Bryan Wassel

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu