Stoolball is a game similar to cricket. It is played by two pairs of two. Women also played the game with their skirts hiked up. As the name implies, the game was played with stools and a ball. The two stools are placed on their sides on the ground so that the tops face each other. They should be about 20-25 feet apart. One team begins as defenders of the seat "goals". have sticks to deflect the ball. The other team is the attackers. The play goes as follows:
One attacker throws the ball at the opposite defender's target. If the ball hits the target, the defenders are "out".
If the defender swings and misses, he needs to touch his stick to the target before the attacker on his side of the field can touch the ball to it, in which case the defender will be "out".
When the defender hits the ball, both defenders must switch sides while the attackers chase down the ball to touch it to either of the targets. The defenders must switch at least once, touching the sticks to the targets, and can switch as many times as they want. They receive one point for each switch. If the defenders are caught between targets when the attackers tag one of them, the defenders are "out".
In the event there is no "out" on a play, the ball is then passed to the second attacker to throw. On an "out", the defenders and attackers switch positions.
The play continues until a preset number of points. One source states the proper total is 63.