"Football at Slack," by the English poet Ted Hughes, depicts a group of men playing football (a.k.a. soccer) on a stormy day. Instead of being put off by the wind and rain, the men are awed by nature's majesty and delight in splashing about until the sun returns, seemingly drawn out from behind the clouds by the men's joy. The poem celebrates the power of the human spirit, and it also suggests that there's wonder and beauty to be found even in nature's fury. "Football at Slack" was published in Hughes's 1979 collection, The Remains of Elmet.

• Read the full text of “Football at Slack”

• “Football at Slack” Summary

• “Football at Slack” Themes

  • 

    The Power of the Human Spirit

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-10
    • Lines 16-18
    • Lines 22-25
  • 

    The Majesty and Power of Nature

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 11-15
    • Lines 19-21

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Football at Slack”

  • Lines 1-3

    Between plunging valleys, ...
    ... blown ball bounced.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 4-6

    The blown ball ...
    ... blew away downwind—

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 7-10

    The rubbery men ...
    ... ball blew back.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 11-15

    Winds from fiery ...
    ... a steel press.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 16-18

    Hair plastered, they ...
    ... washed and happy

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 19-21

    While the humped ...
    ... of Atlantic depression—

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 22-25

    But the wingers ...
    ... to watch them.

    

    

    

    

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• “Football at Slack” Symbols

  • 

    The Storm

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 6
    • Lines 8-9
    • Lines 11-21
    • Lines 24-25

• “Football at Slack” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “Between,” “bareback”
    • Line 2: “bunting”
    • Line 3: “Bounced,” “blown,” “ball,” “bounced”
    • Line 4: “blown,” “ball,” “merry,” “men”
    • Line 6: “ball,” “blew”
    • Line 7: “bounced”
    • Line 8: “ball”
    • Line 10: “blown,” “ball,” “blew,” “back”
    • Line 11: “holes,” “heaven”
    • Line 12: “hills”
    • Line 13: “glare”
    • Line 14: “Mixed,” “mad,” “glooms”
    • Line 15: “press”
    • Line 16: “plastered”
    • Line 17: “puddle”
    • Line 20: “unthinkable”
    • Line 21: “Under,” “depth,” “depression”
    • Line 23: “goalie,” “horizontal”
    • Line 24: “again,” “golden,” “holocaust”

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “Men,” “colours”
    • Line 3: “Bounced,” “blown,” “ball,” “bounced”
    • Line 4: “blown,” “ball,” “jumped,” “coloured,” “men”
    • Line 6: “ball,” “blew”
    • Line 7: “men,” “bounced”
    • Line 8: “ball,” “jumped”
    • Line 10: “blown,” “ball,” “blew”

  • Personification

    

    

    

    

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    Where personification appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “on a bareback of hill”
    • Lines 2-3: “Men in bunting colours / Bounced”
    • Lines 4-5: “The blown ball jumped, and the merry-coloured men / Spouted like water to head it.”
    • Line 7: “The rubbery men bounced after it.”
    • Line 8: “The ball jumped up”
    • Lines 13-14: “The glare light / Mixed its mad oils and threw glooms.”
    • Line 15: “Then the rain lowered a steel press.”
    • Lines 24-25: “a golden holocaust / Lifted the cloud’s edge, to watch them.”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-9
    • Lines 11-12
    • Lines 13-25

  • Metaphor

    

    

    

    

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    Where metaphor appears in the poem:

    • Lines 13-14: “The glare light / Mixed its mad oils”
    • Line 14: “ and threw glooms”
    • Line 15: “Then the rain lowered a steel press.”
    • Lines 16-17: “they all just trod water / To puddle glitter”
    • Lines 19-21: “While the humped world sank foundering / And the valleys blued unthinkable / Under the depth of Atlantic depression—”
    • Lines 24-25: “And once again a golden holocaust / Lifted the cloud’s edge, to watch them.”

  • Simile

    

    

    

    

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    Where simile appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-5: “the merry-coloured men / Spouted like water to head it.”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “hill / Men”
    • Lines 2-3: “colours / Bounced”
    • Lines 4-5: “men / Spouted”
    • Lines 8-9: “wind / Over”
    • Lines 11-12: “heaven / Piled”
    • Lines 12-13: “them / To”
    • Lines 13-14: “light / Mixed”
    • Lines 16-17: “water / To”
    • Lines 17-18: “up / Coming”
    • Lines 18-19: “happy / While”
    • Lines 19-20: “foundering / And”
    • Lines 20-21: “unthinkable / Under”
    • Lines 22-23: “air / And”
    • Lines 23-24: “horizontal / And ”
    • Lines 24-25: “holocaust / Lifted”

• “Football at Slack” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Football
  • Slack
  • Plunging
  • Bunting
  • To head it
  • Spouted
  • Piled
  • Glare light
  • Glooms
  • Steel press
  • Plastered
  • Puddle
  • Trod water
  • Foundering
  • Humped
  • Atlantic depression
  • Wingers
  • Goalie
  • A golden holocaust
  • (Location in poem: )

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Football at Slack”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “Football at Slack” Speaker

• “Football at Slack” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “Football at Slack”

• More “Football at Slack” Resources

  • External Resources

    • A Ted Hughes Timeline — An in-depth timeline of Hughes's life and work.

    • Ted Hughes Society Book Review — Read a review of Hughes's eighth collection of poetry, Remains of Elmet. 

    • The Landscapes of Elmet — Check out a copy of the collection in which "Football at Slack" was published, which includes original photography by Fay Godwin alongside Hughes's poems.

    • Ted Hughes: Stronger Than Death — Watch a BBC Documentary that explores the impact Hughes's real-life experiences had on his work. 

    • The Calder Valley — Peruse photographs of the Calder Valley, where "Football at Slack" (and other poems in Hughes's collection) take place.

  • LitCharts on Other Poems by Ted Hughes

    • A Memory

    • Anniversary

    • A Picture of Otto

    • Bayonet Charge

    • Cat and Mouse

    • Fulbright Scholars

    • Full Moon and Little Frieda

    • Hawk Roosting

    • Relic

    • Roe-Deer

    • Snowdrop

    • Telegraph Wires

    • The Harvest Moon

    • The Horses

    • The Jaguar

    • The Other

    • The Shot

    • The Thought Fox

    • Wind

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