It’s fantastic that we are coming across new games all the time. We’re not sure what name this dodgeball version being promoted by @moidavide6 had originally been given, but the name ‘Thief Dodgeball’ we felt appropriate 🙂 If you know it by any other names let us know.
It’s a little more involved than basic dodgeball as it requires a large hoop and a cone for each player. Only the player who starts as the thief does not have a cone. Their job is to steal every other player’s cone without being hit by the ball. This looks like it works well if you use hula hoops (lightweight hoops that are 36 inches [approx 90cm] in diameter or more), but as they are not being moved in the game you could use similarly sized areas that demarked using chalk, etc. Cones should be quite tall and easy to grab. You could use other objects, but the aim is to have something relatively easy for the thief to grab. The lower down they have to stoop to grab anything the harder it will be.
Arrange all the player’s hoops in a large circle with the thief’s hoop in the middle. Place a cone in front of each player’s hoop, on the side side of their hoop facing inwards – towards the thief’s hoop in the centre of the circle. Each player stands in a hoop and remains there for the game. The thief starts out standing in their own hoop. The object of the game is for the thief to run around stealing each cone and bring it back to their hoop. The thief wins if they collect all the cones. The only way to stop them is for players to hit the thief with the ball below the waist. They cannot stop or hinder the thief from taking the cones any other way. Players can also only throw if they are standing in a hoop (they can leave their hoops to retrieve a ball).
The game can be played two ways:
- Players when they have had their cone taken are no longer able to play, but remain standing or can sit in their circle.
- Players remain in play regardless of whether they have had their cone stolen or not.
The second version is probably more fun, particularly for younger children who might find it frustrating to have their cone stolen early on and not even had a chance to throw the ball.
Swap players once the thief is hit or when win and manage to steal all the cones.