GB2499649A - A curtain to provide a football pitch boundary with a flap defining a goal - Google Patents

A curtain for hanging up as a football pitch backdrop characterised by a flap 4 protruding from the plane of the curtain to define a goal portion and means to retain the goal portion in an erect position. Posts may be provided to define the goal frame and a weight or loops for pegs may be provided to secure the goal to the ground. The flap 4 may have markings to visually distinguish it from the rest of the curtain. The curtain may be a mesh, a plastics material or a fabric material. The curtain may be hung using folded over portions which receive a string. A method of deploying the curtain is also disclosed.

1

Football Goal Background

5 One of the biggest frustrations of playing football in the garden or playground or other confined spaces is that if you shoot the ball at the goal and miss, the ball may fly over the fence into another place, break a window, or smash something like the fence.

In addition, if the goals that are used (whether a formal plastic or metal structure,

10 or simply two jumpers on the ground) do not have netting, then even scoring a goal can leave the football some way away or cause damage.

Therefore there is a need for a football goal that helps prevent ball escape from the end or ends of the pitch where the goals are.

15

In addition, many parents complain of the eyesore that is 1 or 2 large white goals permanently positioned in their small back garden. They look unsightly and they get in the way when football is not being played.

20 It would therefore be advantageous if there was a football goal that could virtually disappear between games.

The present invention therefore provides a football goal curtain for hanging as a football pitch back drop as set forth in claim 1 of the appended claims.

25

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is further provided a method of creating a collapsible football goal as set forth in claim 14 of the appended claims.

30

2

Description

The present invention delivers the solution to the two problems described above; in that it captures the ball whether the ball goes in the goal or misses, and it virtually 5 disappears between uses.

According to the present invention there is provided a football goal as set forth in claim 1 of the appended claims, and a method of erecting a football goal as set forth in claim 14 of the appended claims.

10

Figures 1-3 in the attached appendix illustrate the product; that being a substantial area of netting that has been modified to allow the creation of a 3D football goal from the 2D net, and one that can be closed away after use just like a curtain.

15 Figure 1 shows it cleared away and Figure 3 shows it fully open. Figure 2 shows the main netting in place before the football goal has been secured into place.

A cable (marked 1 on figure 1) is suspended above the desired goal-line from a solid location at either end (marked 2 on figure 1). That solid location could be a tree, a

20 post, a fence, a wall, a designed pole, or some other. Additionally the cable may be permanently attached, or with hooks to allow it to be removed or retracted to one end like a retractable washing line.

A substantial area of netting (marked 3 on figure 2), larger than the goal mouth

25 within it, hangs from the overhead cable. It opens and closes like a curtain. It may be attached by curtain hooks or loops, or the cable may be threaded through the netting or a sleeve attached to the top of the netting, or other. Alternatively there may be no cable at all and the net could be attached from its corners.

30 The hanging netting will be larger than the goal mouth within it; ideally as wide and high as possible, so as to cover as much of the breadth and height of the goal line as possible to prevent ball escape.

35

In the goal area of the net curtain (marked 4 on figure 3), the net may be modified with extra panels of netting inserted (marked 5 on figure 3) to allow it to retain the ball when the flap is pulled backward into the shape of a football goal.

When the flap (marked 6 on figure 3) is pulled back into position, the goal shape is then attached to the ground either by pegs in key locations (such as marked 7 on figure 3), or by weights, or other method. This is both to establish the shape of the goal and to prevent ball escape under the foot of the net.

The rest of the width of the main net may be attached to the ground in the same way as above (such as marked 8 on figure 3).

It may be that the vertices of the goal mouth section are marked or have some form of material attached so as to give the appearance of goalposts and crossbar.

It may be that sleeves are added along the goal posts and cross bar vertices allowing solid posts to be slotted in to give more rigidity and a more realistic "hit the post" concept.

Overall therefore, it can be seen that this "Football Goal Net Curtain" will both help prevent ball escape from football pitches, and also virtually disappear when closed away after the game, so losing the eyesore or obstacles of traditional football goals.

4

1. Claims

   1. A curtain for hanging up as a football pitch back drop characterised by a flap protruding from the plane of the curtain to define a goal portion and means for

   5 retaining the goal portion in an erect position protruding from the curtain.

   2. A curtain as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for retaining includes a rigid frame for supporting the vertices of the goal portion.

   10 3. A curtain as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the means for retaining is at least one weight for preventing movement of the goal portion relative to the curtain.

   4. A curtain as claimed in claims 1 to 3, wherein the means for retaining is at least one loop provided in the goal portion, and secured, in use, to the ground by a tent

   15 peg.

   5. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the flap is joined to the plane of the curtain by side panels to form a sealed goal portion in the form of a three dimensional pocket.

   20

   6. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least the flap of the curtain is marked so as to be distinguishable from the rest of the curtain.

   7. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, formed of a mesh material.

   25

   8. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, formed of a plastics material.

   9. A curtain as claimed in claims 1 to 7, formed of a fabric material.

   30 10. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim including a folded-over portion for receiving a string from which the curtain can be hung.

   35

   11. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the vertices of the goal section is marked so as to distinguish the goal section from the remainder of the curtain.

   5

   12. A curtain as claimed in any preceding claim, further including means for securing the edge of the curtain to the ground.

   13. A curtain as claimed in claim 12, wherein the means include fabric loops 5 retained by tent pegs.

   14. A method of creating a collapsible football goal in a garden comprising the steps of:

   - providing a curtain as claimed in any preceding claim

   10 - suspending the curtain from two points above the ground such that the curtain defines a football goal surround, and

   - erecting the goal portion of the curtain so that it protrudes from the plane of the curtain to form a three dimensional goal portion.

   15 15. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the step of erecting the goal portion comprises securing the goal portion to the ground.

   16. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the step of erecting the goal portion comprises inserting rigid members into the vertices of the goal portion.

   20

   17. A method as claimed in claims 14 to 16, further comprising securing the remainder of the curtain to the ground.

   18. A method as claimed in claim 14 to 17 wherein a wire or cable is secured at 25 the 2 points from which the curtain is suspended.