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It will soon be Haxey Hood day – the day when part of the Isle of Axholme goes a bit crazy for the afternoon to mark one of England's oldest traditions.

Regulars from four pubs will be going head to head in a marathon battle to get the famed Hood into their favoured watering hole in the latest staging of the traditional contest which has been running for more than 700 years.

The official story is that in the 14th century, Lady de Mowbray, wife of Isle landowner, John De Mowbray, was out riding towards Westwoodside on the hill that separates it from Haxey.

As she went over the hill her silk riding hood was blown away by the wind.

The Haxey Hood will soon be upon us once more.

Thirteen farm workers in the field rushed to help and chased the hood all over the field.

It was finally caught by one of the farm workers, but being too shy to hand it back to the lady, he gave it to one of the others to hand back to her.

She thanked the farm worker who had returned the hood and said that he had acted like a Lord, whereas the worker who had actually caught the hood was a Fool.

So amused was she by this act of chivalry and the resulting chase, that she donated 13 acres of land on condition that the chase for the hood would be re-enacted each year.

Here's 21 things you might not know about the Haxey Hood.

1. The contest is always held on the Twelfth Day Of Christmas - January 6, unless the date falls on Sunday when its held on January 5.

2. The rugby style scrum is officially called The Sway.

3. The hood is actually a cylindrical piece of leather.

4. Four pubs compete - The Loco, Duke William and the King's Arms in Haxey and the Carpenters Arms in Westwoodside.

5. The nobles mentioned in the story did exist. Records show that John De Mowbray (29 November 1310 - 4 October 1361), the 3rd Baron Mowbray of Axholme, would be the most likely candidate for the husband of the lady.

6. The Hood is thought to date from about 1359.

7. It has similarities to other village combats, such as Ashbourne's Royal Shrovetide Football, the Shrove Tuesday Football Games in Sedgefield, Durham and Alnwick, Northumberland and the Hallaton Bottle Kicking contest in Leicestershire.

8. Speculation regarding the hood having originally been the head or penis of a sacrificial animal used in a fertility ritual are just that - pure speculation.

9. The songs sung ahead of the contest in the pubs are well-known folk songs including John Barleycorn, Cannons (Drink

21 things you need to know about the Haxey Hood as annual game draws near