Many think of cribbage as an old man’s game, and they’re not far wrong. This may have something to do with the fact that crib has been around since 1630. And as you’d expect of a game knocking on 400, many variations have evolved. Between two and four players can play with anything from three to seven cards (go for five cards in a four-player). The two-player version is most common.
To understand cribbage, think of bridge, and then imagine a much, much less boring game. Crib has none of the petty swagger of poker; there is zero social aspiration involved, and yet I wouldn’t blink at offering the Duke of Kent a quick hand. It is possibly the most English game in the world. All the rigmarole – the arcane scoring, the insider language, the happy clutter of pegs and jargon – allows the game to spread out from the cards and up into the cracks of conversation.
In short, Crib is fun! The U3A Jávea Cribbage Group is lead by Angela Rich. I asked Angela what message she would like to pass on and her answer was simply, “Crib is a great game but above all else, our Group is super friendly and we always welcome new members. If you haven’t played before, we’ll show you the ropes and you’ll catch on really quickly”.
The Cribbage Group meets every Monday throughout the year and that includes August. They meet at the Cafe inside the Montgo Shopping Centre (which used to be Supercor and is now Supeconomico) at 2.45pm for a 3pm start. If you’re interested, you can just turn up or contact the Group Leader Angela Rich on cribbage@u3ajavea.com.
Oh and finally, “One for his nob” is when you hold a jack of the same suit as the turned up card and “Two for his heels” is when the dealer turns up a jack of any suit!
