Bourton-on-the-Water can get busy with tourists, but the River is usually a little more sedate… © Go Cotswolds. All Rights Reserved.
It’s fair to say that us Brits are obsessed with the weather.
If we’re not watching the weather report, we’re talking about how warm/cold/wet/windy it is, or complaining that the weatherman got it wrong – again. A flake of snow or a falling leaf on a road or train track brings the country to a standstill. And if there’s one thing we especially like to moan about, it’s the weather on August Bank Holiday Monday.
Though technically still the British Summer, the August Bank Holiday is pretty much always wet. No matter how much we dream of a day with the family on the beach, or a BBQ with friends in the garden, chances are the August Bank Holiday is going to be grim.
Our Go Cotswolds tour on Sunday 24th August was glorious (well, dry at least!) but sure enough, by the time the Bank Holiday Monday came around the next day, the heavens opened and didn’t stop. But that didn’t matter to the residents and tourists of Bourton-on-the-Water…
Crowds in their hundreds huddled under umbrellas and raincoats to watch a charity football match with a difference. Whereas most football games get called off if the pitch is too soggy, this particular August Bank Holiday Monday match is played right in the middle of the River Windrush, the ankle-deep brook running through the middle of this picturesque Cotswolds town.
Every August bank Holiday Monday the River Windrush becomes the pitch for a charity football match!
© Martyn Wright, 2010 via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
This year the ‘Football in the River’ match was played between Bourton Rovers’ 1st and 2nd teams, each braving the icy waters to wade – rather than dribble – and splash the ball – rather than header it – into one the goal nets set up between two of Bourton’s famous bridges. With ‘pitch’ conditions already challenging to say the least, the teams also had to struggle through persistently heavy rain, but this didn’t stop the 1st XI securing the victory with two second-half goals.
The Bourton river football match, which has been played every year for almost 100 years, is just one of the quirky sports the Cotswolds is known for. You can see some more photos from this year’s match by checking out photographer Anthony Paul’s website – you’ll need to enter your email address and the password is ‘gocotswolds’!
You can also find out more about this and the more brutal pursuits of the ‘Cotswolds Olympicks’ by joining us on a Go Cotswolds tour! To find out more about Go Cotswolds’ guided day trips of the Cotswolds from Stratford-upon-Avon, or to make a booking, please visit www.gocotswolds.co.uk, or contact Tom by phone on +44 (0)7786 920166 or email at tom@gocotswolds.co.uk.