Toad Is Coming to the Hop Sun. Yep, that beloved Sussex game is making the Hop Sun its home and we would love you to get involved.
For the uninitiated, Toad is a pub game native to Sussex that basically involves lobbing a brass token (the Toad) into a hole from a set distance on a lead topped table. Played individually or in teams, it’s a test of skill and accuracy both of which are obviously improved by a few beers.
We hosted our inaugural Toad Tournament in January and it proved very popular. It also showed you lot are not only up for go, but are also pretty good at it!
Check out this amazing 'Perfect 8' finish!
House Hop Sun – Rise of the Heathens
Ok, so we may have got a bit carried away with ourselves BUT we have decided to create our very own Toad Team, appropriately named 'Heathens' to represent House Hop Sun. Could you be up to the challenge and join our ranks to defend our toading honour from the pretenders to the throne?
We do hope so.
If you fancy having a go at Toad there are plenty of ways to get your eye in. We have our own Toad table in the main bar which anyone can use for free – just ask at the bar for the Toads. We also are hosting weekly Thursday Toad TryOuts where you can come down, have a go and perhaps even meet other players. There will be people on hand to explain the rules (very easy) and run a few games with you. All very social and great fun (especially with a beer in hand).
And if you fancy joining our Toad team, well, that would be amazing. The Hop Sun Heathens welcome all players and ability levels – we are social and prioritise the fun.
Mid Sussex League
The Mid Sussex Toad League is set to hop off on 2 May. We will publicise dates and times when they are released. Matches tend to be on Tuesday evenings and rotate around league member locations. You don’t need to travel to every match so there is no pressure. The more interest we have, the greater pool we have to draw our team from.
The Rule Of Toad
Toad in the Hole is a traditional pub game requiring strategy skill, dexterity, and no little amount of intellect or so I'm informed by people who "toss". Played individually or in teams the basic aim is to lob brass coins "toads" at a lead topped table with a hole in the middle.
Players take turns throwing up to 4 toads from the same distance as a dart board onto a square sloped tabletop surfaced with a thick piece of lead having a small hole in the centre.
Scoring down from 31, a game starts with the first player throwing 2 toads. Their opponent throws 3 and from then on all 4 are thrown until scores of less than 4 are reached. At this point only the number of toads equal to the required score can be thrown with an exact score being needed to finish going over results in a player being bust.
A player scores 2 points if a toad goes down the hole, if it lands and stays on the top it scores one point. Hitting the back of the table or falling off scores nothing. As long as it's not touched the back of the table, a toad can score even if it hits or rests on another toad.
Sloped surfaces, worn holes, gouged lead tops, occasionally decades old, the "one off" bespoke character of the tables means no game's the same.
Comments