Last Updated on: 19th June 2023, 05:00 pm
Number 3 on our list of top football games for your garden is football tennis.
Football Tennis
If you’re lucky enough to have your own football tennis set this game is really easy. Remember, you can order your own head tennis set from the Pendle website. However, you can do without one. Just use items from around the house to make your own. For example, find a couple of poles or chairs and tie a piece of string between them.
Why it’s useful
Football tennis is not only a lot of fun but it’s a great way to keep active. You can also use it to work on multiple skills that will help your football. The game requires precision, control, and the ability to read your opponent. You need to be able to tell where the ball is going to land and be quick enough to get it back over the net. So, accuracy is vital if you want to make sure that you return the ball to the right place.
Rules
The aim of football tennis is, unsurprisingly, the same as regular tennis. Two opposing players or teams of two have to try and get the ball over the net and into their opponent’s side.
- To serve the ball, it must be kicked over the net.
- It can be returned using any part of the body except the hands.
- The ball is only allowed to bounce once.
- Each player is allowed to touch the ball twice.
- If the ball goes out of bounds, the other player/team gets a point.
- If a player fails to return the ball, the other player/team gets a point.
These rules can be adapted depending on what age the players are. For example, younger players might require more than one bounce or need more touches to get the ball over. Older players might wish to decrease the number of times they can touch the ball.
Singles
- Set out your football tennis net and plot out a course. Use cones or markers to set the boundaries.
- Nominate one person to act as a referee and keep score.
- Player 1 will serve by kicking the ball over the net.
- Then player 2 tries to get the ball back over the net.
- The volley keeps going for as long as possible.
- The first player to 11 points is the winner.
- If the game is tied at 10 points, then the first player to move ahead by 2 points is the winner.
Doubles
If you have enough players, you can create teams of two to make things even more fun. This means players have to be aware of where the ball is going and where their teammate is.
Switch it up
Why not mix things up and focus on different body parts each for each serve? For example, after the first serve, every player has to return the ball using their left foot, and on the next serve, they have to use their right.
Increase the difficulty
To make the game harder, why not try and keep the ball off the ground completely? Take away the 1 bounce and see how long you can keep the ball going back and forth.
Pendle at Home
Pendle has everything you need to stay healthy and happy at home or football training. Check out our range of training equipment and keep developing your skills.
