Editing Dulwich College (section)

=== Sport ===
When Arthur Herman Gilkes became Master, he adhered to Carver's belief that the physical organisation of the school should be based on the principle that as far as possible management should be in the hands of the boys. Therefore, he continued the tradition of the general running of games being entrusted to a Field Sports Board (sometimes referred to as the Field Sports Committee), composed of the "school captain, captains of cricket, football (rugby), gymnastics, the baths (swimming), fencing, [[fives]], athletics sports, boxing and shooting".<ref>Hodges (1981), ''God's Gift: A Living History'', pp. 221–222.</ref> Gilkes had it that the only masters with authorised status with regards to games were the captain of the Rifle Corps, and treasurer of the Sports Board. By 1894 there no more masters on the Field Sports Committee.<ref>Piggott (2008), ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', p. 180.</ref> The Board at the time controlled the appointment of captains and had some say in the style of blazers that could be worn as uniform.<ref>Piggott (2008), ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', p. 374.</ref> It was the Field Sports Committee, for example, that governed the award of the college's most prestigious colours, the white blazer. The system today is very different with assistant masters now being in charge of games, and acting more as coaches.<ref>Piggott (2008), ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', p. 334.</ref>

Colours for sporting achievement were the first such colours to be established at the college (see [[#School uniform and colours|School uniform and colours]] below). Originally colours consisted of blazers for the 1st and 2nd team of the major sports, rugby and cricket (as well as ties, caps and squares) and colours for minor sports, (not extending to a full blazer but blazer badges plus caps and ties).<ref name="Hodges, S 1981 pages 222"/> Caps were also available, such as for rugby, the pie shaped porker<ref name="R Piggott 2008 pages 303">Piggott (2008), ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', pp. 303.</ref> and more exclusive items such as the rare rugby honours cap, and the white blazer, only awarded on the recommendation of the Field Sports Committee with the essential requirement being that a boy be a member of both the Cricket 1st XI and the Rugby 1st XV ''and'' display prominence in a minor sport.<ref name="R Piggott 2008 pages 227">Piggott (2008), ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', p. 227.</ref> Testament to the judgment of the committee are the careers of certain alumni who received this blazer such as [[Trevor Bailey]] the [[England cricket]] all-rounder, who was so awarded because he was also a distinguished squash player.

The college still divides sport into Major and Minor. The major sports have always included rugby and cricket in the Michaelmas and summer terms respectively and for many decades just these two were deemed as major. In the 20th century, [[field hockey]] became a major sport in the Lent term, having been introduced in 1953. [[Soccer]], a minor sport since it was allowed in 1970, became of equal status to hockey in 2000. A raft of minor sports has also been recognised at the college for well over a century in many cases. Minor sports have included athletics from 1864; Fives from 1894 (effectively ended by the courts being destroyed by enemy bombs in the Second World War); shooting from 1878 (less applicable due to safety regulations and the loss of the .22 range); boxing from 1879 (abandoned in the 1960s but with martial arts now filling the void), tennis from 1880 (although banned during A H Gilkes' time); swimming from 1883 with the college being one of the first schools to erect a swimming pool; gymnastics from 1891; fencing (like boxing, saw a demise in the 1960s but still has a representative team); squash and water polo. The school also has teams for golf; badminton; basketball; croquet; cycling; skiing; table tennis and Rugby fives. The facilities, which include a sports centre complex, courts for most racquet sports, an athletic track, tennis courts, a swimming-pool and acres of playing fields, cater to almost all sporting requirements.<ref>Terry Walsh, "Games and Sports", in J. R. Piggott's, ''Dulwich College, a History 1616–2008'', pp. 334–355 (2008) (Dulwich College: London).</ref> The [[Cow corner]] position in Cricket is said to be named after a field at the College where cricket was played, a position that cows would congregate as there was little reason to place a fielder there.