final time before the hurlers disperse. Usually this will have taken place sometime between 5:30 pm and 6:30 pm unless the hurl and return walk were unusually long. Fitness and running ability are significant factors in hurling: strong runners are the most likely to be involved in the latter stage of the game and to win the ball. Some such hurlers have done so several times; the most prolific on record is Michael Weldhen, who won the ball 17 times for the Country between 1953 and 1982. Several hurlers have won the ball more than once. Evening At 8:00 pm, the winner of the ball returns to Market Square to call-up the ball again. This is followed by a visit to each of St Columb’s public houses, where the ball is immersed in gallon jugs filled with beer. Each gallon will be called-up by a member of the winning side, announcing who has paid for it, and the “silver beer”, as it is known, is shared amongst those present. Often the winner of the ball is carried into each pub in the same manner as at the conclusion of the game. Field of play, goals and the boundary The field of play is considered to be the whole parish of St Columb Major, since if the ball leaves the parish, the game is won. The 1979 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records notes: The largest pitch of any ball game is that of polo, with 12.4 acres… Twice a year in the Parish of St Columb Major, Cornwall, England, a game called hurling (not to be confused with the Irish game) is played on a “pitch” which consists of the entire Parish, approximately 25 square miles (64.7km2). Although a boundary change in the 1980s reduced the size of the parish to about 17.2 square miles. The parish is mainly farmland, but includes woodland, marshy ground and small areas of water, as well as several hamlets, villages and farmsteads, and both major and minor roads. St Columb town occupies a small proportion of the area of the parish and sits just to the west of its centre. The first phase of the game takes place mostly in the town’s main streets which are still open to traffic (although police advise motorists not to drive through). The game can also extend onto private property including gardens and sometimes through houses