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Ashbourne Shrovetide Enters Day Two With Up'ards Leading as Atherstone Crowns Joint Winners

Large, closely managed crowds underscored the games' ritual significance.

Overview

  • The Up'ards hold a 1-0 advantage after Craig Brown scored late on Shrove Tuesday, with play resuming on Ash Wednesday at 2 p.m.
  • Sir Andrew Walker-Okeover turned up the ball on Tuesday, with Pete Mellor due to perform the turn-up today.
  • Royal Shrovetide is contested over two eight-hour sessions with goals at former mill sites, where the ball must strike the goal stone three times to count.
  • Handcrafted leather balls, painted to mark the turners-up and packed with cork to float, are used in a game that roams streets, fields and the river under warden oversight.
  • Atherstone’s 826th Ball Game concluded on Tuesday with two balls popped and James Bernard and Kieran Marshal named joint victors, following police warnings against criminal violence.