Letters to the Editor

Gamesmanship

I cannot let the admittedly charming article about Cilley Ball pass without staking a claim to what is likely the best, albeit most unheralded, dorm-based game in all of Exeter history. I refer, of course, to Common Room Hockey, invented in Merrill Hall circa 1971ish. A common room, a book, a tennis ball and a fireplace were all that it required.

Common room: chairs pushed back to make a “rink” of wall-to-wall carpet, just soft enough to keep players’ knees from bleeding.

Book: the goalie’s stick. Thin enough to easily swing against blistering slap shots, wide enough to have a decent chance of blocking them.

Tennis ball: the “puck.” Easily replaced when confiscated by faculty busting up a game.

Fireplace: the goal mouth. Not sooty because we never built a fire in it.

Teams alternated playing offense and defense to see how many goals either side could score in five-minute rounds. Timing was also important to avoid discovery by faculty. Four players on offense, two on defense, all on hands and knees. Players were honor-bound to keep their stick hand straight and not grip the ball to handle or shoot it. Passing was important to set up the shots. With practice, shooting and passing gained power and accuracy. Playing defense was tough, basically like a two-man-down power play.

I believe my team dominated the league. I perfected a slap shot that had both high speed and pinpoint accuracy. For a reliable goal and to please the fans, I would just aim at the goalie’s face (no masks back then; remember Gump Worsley in the NHL — shudder!) and he would reliably duck.

Although we responsibly closed the curtains to avoid accidental window breakage, faculty nevertheless banned the game. Too much fun to quit, though! After futilely confiscating dozens of “pucks,” the Merrill authorities finally conceded defeat and legalized the game. (To my knowledge, knee football remained forbidden. Stories for another time.)

I hope this letter will influence a new generation of Exonians to revive this awesome game. My greatest gratitude to all my friends who played — you know who you are!

Jeffrey Hotchkiss ’73

Abbot Hall

I enjoyed your piece on Abbot Hall. From my reading in the past, I believe Robert Todd Lincoln lived there. The president sent him to Exeter in order to have a better chance to get into Harvard. He succeeded.

Barry Baron ’63