This is from recollection... opponents have played all their boule but hold shot. My team have two left. The coche had previously been moved nearer the board surround and nothing had been marked (the terrain was too thick anyway). Piste had no out of bound lines...

I try to shoot the holding boule but hit the boards (bad shot I know) but it came back into play and smashed the coche out.

We'd assumed, as nothing had been marked, my team would score 1 point (1 boule left in my hand) even though it was an illegal shot...

I assume you shoud have agreed before starting the game, that any boule or coche out of the piste is out of the game. With that agreement you would have set boundary lines. and your reaction could be OK. But on the other side i can imagine that, if no agreement is made, a boule out of the piste, is not out of the game, as you say there is no boundary-lines. at that point i say you could have trown your final boule and count points from where-ever the objects are. And count every point, as the whole world could be your piste.! But it is a weird situation.....

Hi Dave,

If it was just a friendly game and/or the opponents are sporting, I would simply say put the jack back where it was.

If the opponents want to insist 'nothing was marked' then you would score 1 point - if the called the umpire, there's nothing they could do if nothing was marked.

Regards,

Ray

I thought as much. It was actually a league division two game. The opposition were very friendly and gave us the point after a short discussion with their captain.

Thanks Ray.

Something similar happened in a Regional Qualifier I played in a few years ago. We had a boule next to the jack, the opponents shot & missed, their boule rebounded off the back board, knocking the jack on to one of their boules.

Nothing had been marked but their shooter immediately replaced the jack back where it was, next to our boule. A very fair, sporting gesture. None of the 'nothing was marked, it stays where it is' nonsense that does sometimes occur.

Pétanque as it should be played, in the spirit of the game.

Regards,

Ray