Summer travels often bring some unexpected down time. Penny football is a good game to fill up some moments. Since this is a casual lunchroom developed game, there are several versions of rules.
All you need to play are three pennies, two players, and a table. A smallish table works best. You can still play on a large table, but you may want to state boundaries so that the coins don’t get to far off track.
Flip one of the coins to see who goes first. The winner of the coin toss places the three coins in a triangular formation in front of him. All the coins should touch, and one penny should be closer to edge of the table. The second player makes a goal with his fingers. A large goal can be made by laying the sides of your index fingers on the table with your thumbs touching. For a smaller goal fold you middle fingers down and lay your index finger and pinkie flat on the table. To prevent arguments decide before the game if you are allowed to defend your goal or not. Some versions of the game allow the goal keeper to move their index fingers; some say that the goals need to be stationary. I have found that the stationary goals are better for young and competitive children. They seem to argue more when the other player is allowed to defend his goal.
The player flicks one of the pennies and breaks apart the coin formation. Player one now has to flick one of the pennies between the other two. To score, he needs to shoot one of the pennies into the other players goals. As long as the penny passes between the other two, it’s considered a good play. You are allowed to move backward toward your own goal if you need to. If the player fails to flick the coin between the others, or if the coin falls off the table or goes out of pre-declared bounds it is considered a foul – and the other player takes his turn at flicking the pennies toward the opposite goal. After a goal is scored, you do the triangle formation to “kickoff” again. Feel free to come up with your own rules and regulations. You can play until a certain score is reached, or for a certain amount of time, or until your plane finally arrives.
And of course you should keep pennies and all small objects away from any children young enough to want to pop them in their mouths.
For More Travel and Waiting Games See:
Keeping the Kids Busy in the Car and on the Plane