× 50 m. In the middle of the two short sides there was a goal with posts at least 4 m high, and a tape or cross bar 3 m above the ground. The aim of the game was to score a goal by first drop-kicking the ball over the tape or bar and then touching it down ("which is not easy to achieve"). Failing that a "winning advantage" could be scored by touching the ball down anywhere behind the goal line, which would result in a free kick at goal. If a defending player touched the ball down they were awarded a free kick 25 m from the line. The barette could not be thrown or punched forward, though it could be kicked or carried in the hands. At the kick-off, the opposing team had to be 10 m from the ball, and the ball had to remain in the field from the kick. The ball carrier could be blocked, but the aim of the defending team was to touch the ball – when they would call "touch" or "hit". This would result in a "scrum" – a circle of players "into which the Barette is dropped so that it rolls on the ground". The scrum would then kick the ball until it emerged. All players had to be between the ball and their own goal line – the penalty being a free kick. If the barette crossed one of the sidelines the ball would be thrown into what was almost identical to a rugby line-out. A clean catch was rewarded with a free kick (like a "mark" in rugby or Australian Rules) Field The best place to play barette is on a field that is 100 - 150 meters (328.08 - 492.13 ft) wide and 50 - 60 meters (164.04 - 196.85 ft) long. Rugby, and the decline of barette Rugby was first played in France in 1879 - at the same time as barette was codified and began to expand. This appears to have created fertile ground for rugby to expand, which it did – especially in the main barette-playing areas of the south-west. As rugby expanded so barette declined. After the First World War the game did have a brief revival as a purely women's team sport. With the active support of leading French rugby players such as André Theuriet, national championships are developed. Film and