Also known as Diketo/Upuca/Magava/Ukugenda. A co-ordination game.
Contents
1 Equipment
2 The play area
3 Team composition and roles
4 Rules
5 Scoring
Equipment
10 small marbles or stones for each player
A ghoen / taw or a big round stone (mokêtô) for each player
A small hole in the ground (about 15 cm in diameter and 5 cm deep)
The play area
A soft soil surface in which players can dig a small hole.
Team composition and roles
Boys and girls of different ages can play this game. It is played by two players at a time, who compete against each other.
Round one
Players toss a coin to decide who will start the game. The player who starts the game places all his or her stones in the hole. He or she throws the ghoen into the air and while it is in the air, scoops all the stones out of the hole with one hand, before catching the ghoen.
If the player catches the ghoen, then one of the small stones is placed next to the player outside the circle or hole.
With the next throw, the remaining nine stones are pushed back into the hole with the same hand.
With the following throw, the nine stones will be scooped out again. The game continues in this way. Every time the ghoen is caught successfully, one more stone is placed outside the hole next to the player, until there is just one stone left.
When all the stones have been successfully scooped out, all the stones will be put back into the hole and round two begins.
If the player drops the ghoen, then it is the opponent’s turn to play.
Round two
Round two commences with all the stones back in the hole. If the player catches the ghoen after throwing it into the air, then two of the small stones are placed next to the player outside the circle or hole. With the next throw, the remaining eight stones are pushed back into the hole with the same hand.
With the following throw, the eight stones will be scooped out again. The game continues in this way. Every time the ghoen is caught successfully, two more stones are placed outside the hole next to the player, until there are two stones left in the hole.
When all the stones have been successfully scooped out, all the stones will be put back into the hole and round three begins.
If the player drops the ghoen, then it is the opponent’s turn to play.
Round three
Round three commences with all the stones back in the hole. If the player catches the ghoen after throwing it into the air, then three of the small stones are placed next to the player outside the circle or hole. With the next throw, the remaining seven stones are pushed back into the hole with the same hand.
With the following throw, the seven stones will be scooped out again. The game continues in this way. Every time the large stone is caught successfully, three more stones are placed outside the hole next to the player, until there is one stone left in the hole.
If the player drops the ghoen, then it is the opponent’s turn to play.
Rules
No coaching is allowed during play.
Players are not allowed to shift position during play.
All stones should be scooped out of the hole each time during the game.
Scoring
If a player drops the ghoen, or makes a mistake with the number of stones being moved in and out of the hole, then it is the other player’s turn to play.A winThe winner is the player who has advanced furthest in the game without making a mistake, i.e. who has thrown and caught the ghoen without dropping it, and who has moved the correct number of stones or marbles in and out of the hole in each round.