Posted by Peter Ceresole on May 13, 2004 at 15:13:14 from 80.177.22.49 user PeterC.
In Reply to: Re: 15 vs. 11 posted by John Wilson on May 13, 2004 at 13:38:23:
While some editions of WH may have John referring to his chances of making the “first eleven” football ie soccer team
The complication comes because John refers to both:
"It's lucky it's not the football term," said John. "A month might make just the difference about getting into the fifteen." (J.C 1948 p 114)
It's absolutely clear from that that he means Rugby football. However, when I first read it at the age of nine (and as a football player at school) I found that sentence mystifying, as I didn't know how many players there were in a Rugby team.