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If you’ve ever been to France on holiday, or indeed anywhere along the Mediterranean coast, you couldn’t have failed to notice gatherings of locals in nearly every town, village and tiny hamlet, playing boules. It seems this sport, long beloved by the French, is fast gaining in popularity, not only in Britain but throughout the world.

A sport for everyone

It’s a sport for anyone of any age and from every walk of life. The French don’t have exclusive rights to the game even if the word pétanque comes from the Marseillaise dialect meaning ‘stuck feet.’ This expression derives from the fact that when playing boules the feet have to remain firmly fixed together on the ground within a marked circle.

There is no need to be especially agile or active in order to play. In fact, it has to be said, it is so very much easier on stiff and aching joints than racing about a squash or tennis court, or hiking round a golf course. However, don’t make the mistake of thinking that it’s only a game for ‘recycled teenagers.’ The Daily Mail, in July 2010, carried an article in which it stated, “recently 900 hip young urban things gathered in Chelsea to compete in the 3rd Pernod Ricard British Boules tournament.”

The game has gone worldwide

There are petanque clubs world-wide, from Tel Aviv to Thailand, Spain to South Africa and hundreds all over Britain. The memberships grow weekly and new clubs are opening all the time.

Easily affordable

For an initial outlay of under £100 you can obtain a set of official competition boules but if you want to start more cautiously, a set of leisure boules are considerably cheaper. Club fees are usually quite reasonable, ranging from £20 to £50 per annum. Some clubs, in addition, charge a small, nominal fee for each session played whilst others might not. Most clubs have spare sets of boules for beginners to try before committing themselves and after some initial instruction you can be up and playing within ten minutes.

Not complicated

The rules are straightforward; the game usually leisurely except at competition level when professional players may practise cunning and merciless tactics

The basic concept of petanque is to throw a small wooden ball, a cochonnet, (French for baby pig), but usually just called a ‘cosh,’ and then to aim a metal ball, (boule), so that it lands closer to the cosh than your opponent’s.

It is played in teams. The team who wins the toss starts by standing within a drawn circle and throwing the cosh. They then throw a boule aiming to get as near to the cosh as possible. The opposing team then follow, trying to get even nearer and keep playing until they achieve this. When they do, the first team then have to throw again trying to do even better. Play continues in this fashion until all boules have been played. This is called an ‘end.’ A point is scored for each boule that a team gets nearer to the cosh than the opponents. A maximum of six points can be scored in one ‘end’ and a minimum of one. Ends are repeated until one team reaches the winning score of 13 points.

You just need an open space

Petanque can be played on any level, firm ground. Grass is usually too soft. The French often utilise all sorts of makeshift surfaces - picnic sites, country paths, even rough ground beside rivers. However, a properly constructed pétanque site, (bouledrome), has a number of pitches, (pistes), each between 3 and 5 metres wide and between 16 and 20 metres long. The surface is seldom completely smooth; small dips, bumps and odd stones merely add to the ups and downs of the game.

Find out about the history of the game

The history of pétanque makes for fascinating reading. The British Pétanque website reports that two balls and a jack were found in the sarcophagus of an Egyptian prince which could indicate that an early type of pétanque might have been in existence back then. It also states that during the reign of Elizabeth the First, soldiers and sailors often played a form of bowls with small metal cannon balls. It is generally accepted now, that the present day version of pétanque was developed in a village near Marseille in 1907 when the locals adapted an original and more strenuous game so that disabled people could still compete.
Pétanque is usually played outdoors, though some clubs have bad weather cover and most have a clubhouse/pavilion in which to gather. It is not unknown for enthusiasts to compete in driving wind and rain. The only reason they don’t play in snowy conditions is that the boules don’t roll in snow! Because of the twists and turns of a petanque game and the ploys and schemes used to reach that magic winning number of 13 points, the mind is kept sharply focused. As in all new sports, proficiency is not reached after just a few games but practice and concentration are all that’s necessary to obtain full enjoyment.

On a final note

There is an old French tradition that if you lose a game 13-0, (a whitewash), the losers have to kiss the bottom of a girl called Fanny! Who Fanny is, or was, has never been quite clear but apparently there was usually a substitute on hand in the form of a picture, carving or piece of pottery! So, be warned, if you decide to take up the game never get whitewashed in case your club upholds the French tradition! Less embarrassing and certainly far more acceptable is the usual custom for the losers to buy drinks for the winners.

For further information see: www.britishpétanque.org