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Clip description
‘Mission games’, like soccer and cricket, are played by the Trobriand Islanders in 1950. A group of modern men talk about how they play the game of cricket and the differences from the way they were taught initially. In the lead-up to a match, players march together in the dress of war, then pair up in lines symbolising their previous formations for war.
Curator’s notes
Mission games were introduced by the missionaries to take the place of warfare. The playing of cricket replaced ritual and political warfare using spears and was a peaceful way of continuing traditional competition called ‘kayasa’. The Trobriand Islanders adapted the game which is very different from the international version played in most other parts of PNG.
