Reading the Opponent

Greetings, Everybody has been in this situation before... You are called up for your bout, you get yourself ready, you wander out on to the field, the various litanies are read, the marshal then calls you to on guard, and then "Allez!" You stand there looking at your opponent thinking "What do I do now?" This is the first place where reading the opponent becomes a practical thing, of course, if we are smart we observe our opponents off the field as well. This blog will be focussed on those aspects of reading the opponent which occur on the field. It is not designed to tell you how to deal with every opponent, just how to get the information so you have some ideas about how to deal with your opponents. The first question that is asked is why is reading the opponent important? There are various reasons that answer this particular question. The first and most practical one is that so we do not launch into an attack and skewer ourselves on the opponent's point in the process. This can be avoided through reading of the opponent and knowing how he will react. This leads on to another aspect, that of predicting what the opponent can or cannot do. The ability to predict what the opponent can or cannot do is dependent on reading the opponent, and if we can see what the opponent can or cannot do we can plan for those things that they might do. The element of prediction comes from reading the opponent both stationary and in action, each one of these elements will tell us something about the opponent. There are two main senses which are of greatest use to the fencer in reading the opponent and one which is less useful. The two which are the most useful are sight and touch, the one which is least useful is hearing. Hearing is limited due to the head protection which is worn when fencing, this muffles the ability to hear and reduces the effectiveness of this particular sense. Sight is the most obvious one as we are looking at our opponent and seeing what they do or do not do. The sense of touch is also important as we can also feel where the opponent may move and how they move through contact through the weapons. Each one of these two most useful senses will be addressed in turn, giving some ideas about how they can be used to read the opponent. The first sense that will be discussed is sight. This is more than just looking at your opponent, it is observing them. In this it is important to look at details but also at the whole picture as well. The details assist with building a complete picture of the opponent. We will start from the ground and work upwards. You can tell things from the position of the feet of your opponent. Is their front foot pointed at you? Is their back foot in line with their front foot? Are they standing flat-footed, or are they more on the balls of their feet? Each one of these elements will tell you something about the opponent. If their front foot is not pointed at you then their facing may be different. This can also affect the accuracy of their thrust. If their feet are in line with one another the opponent may have a tendancy to use more linear footwork. If they are standing flat-footed they will move slower than if they are on the balls of their feet. Needless to say the primary information you will get from looking at the feet will be about movement. Similar information is gained from looking at the legs. Are the opponent's knees bent? Are they bent deeply? This will give you some indication about how well the opponent will move and also some indication of how quickly. The next element to look at is the body. This is the primary body mass that the opponent carries during fencing. This should also partially consider the head of the opponent, but staying with the body, questions can be asked. Is the body upright or bent? Is the opponent slouching or hunched? Where is their body mass located? The location of the body mass will determine which foot, if either the weight is placed, this will give some idea as to wether the opponent is more likely to move forward or backward. The bending of the body can indicate some of this direction, this can also give you some idea about what they are trying to protect the most. A slouching or hunched opponent may be tired or scared, this will affect their fencing ability. Moving on to the head, the position of the head will tell you much of what has also been discovered by the position of the body due to its weight. If you can see your opponent's face you can see what sort of expression they have and this will tell you about the opponent and their feelings about the bout. Hands and arms are important. They are a direct connection between the body and the weapon of the opponent. These limbs will determine where the weapon is and is not able to be placed. How is the opponent holding the weapon? This can give some indication about what they are likely to do. Where are the arms placed in the on guard position? How does the opponent move them? Each one of these will tell you where the next movement may be. Is the hand and arm extended from the body, or withdrawn? Are they in an advanced position or more refused? This may give you some indication about what sort of blade engagement, if any, you will get out of your opponent. ....

The rest of this article can be found in Un-Blogged: A Fencer's Ramblings by Henry Walker, which is available in paperback from:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Blogged-Ramblings-Henry-Leigh-Walker/dp/098764470X
Booktopia: https://www.booktopia.com.au/un-blogged-henry-leigh-walker/book/9780987644701.html
Among other places...

It is also available in electronic format (pdf) from: https://buy.stripe.com/fZecP419c7CB9VKeUV

... or direct from the author.