History of Football
Five subsequent
meetings over the next two months saw the drawing up of the code, predominantly
informed by the recently published Cambridge Rules but excluding regulations on
running with the ball `properly' and the acceptance of `hacking'.
The latter caused considerable uproar, with the representative from Blackheath Rugby
Club claiming `hacking is the true football' and thus voicing an opinion echoed today
by many ex-footballers turned television pundits. The meetings also saw the
institution of `soccer' as a potential abbreviation for `Association Football'
comparable to `rugger' in rugby, again igniting a debate currently raging as a result of
football's increased popularity in America (also home to American Football, a.k.a.
Gridiron).
On a practical level, the meetings led to the inauguration of the first coded match (see
the section below on Rules) between Sheffield and Nottingham (now Notts County),
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