IT started with “pyjama” cricket and seven-a-side rugby, and before you knew it all manner of twists on traditional sports were being developed – you can take your hockey under water or your chess set into a boxing ring.

Now Freo can boast its own novel incarnation of ‘the beautiful game’ with soccer in a box, or Boca as inventor Addam Brooks has coined it.

• Addam Brooks’ wife Terezina shows some slick Boca skills at Parmelia Park. Photo supplied

Soccer

Mr Brooks, a self-confessed soccer tragic, said the concept was a by-product of his attempts to give his own game a lift.

“I wanted to improve my own skills, so I went and hired a squash court where I could go bananas for 30 minutes; I got 1000 touches in half an hour,” he said.

“Thinking about how it had helped my own ability, I thought maybe it would be cool to play a game of three-on-three in a squash court.”

He press-ganged some family and friends into a game, and while the court was a little small he realised he was onto something and set about modifying some temporary fencing so he could take Boca outside and make it a reality.

Trials at Parmelia Park in South Fremantle went well, so last weekend Mr Brooks took Boca to the market – literally – by setting it up on South Beach for the popular Sunset Markets.

“It takes soccer into a 9-metre by 11-metre rectangular enclosure,” Mr Brooks said.

“It has a metre-high goal with no keeper and the teams are three-by-three.”

He says the 10-minute games, which will cost participants $5, are quite a workout but perfect for families to play together. The nature of the game means that people can also line up and join the next available team.

Obviously boxes come with a lid, and Mr Brooks said that if Boca takes off at this summer’s markets, his next step will be to look for a permanent indoor venue which he can custom-tailor to the game’s needs.

Disclaimer: Addam Brooks’ and Steve Grant’s children attend the same school.

by STEVE GRANT