Ref. 27910-2ALTHOUGH most of Swindon went rugby crazy on Saturday, there were some people thinking of world championships of a different kind.

The world championships of Tribound - a board game designed in Wiltshire - were held in Long's Bar, Old Town.

Contestants from as far afield as New Zealand and Australia battled it out to decide who would take the title of world Tribound champion. The two Australian competitors were knocked out in the first round, but Kiwi Mel Smith, who is here in the UK while her husband is based at the military college in Shrivenham, managed to take the women's title.

Paul Wells, the Salisbury-based inventor of the game, won the men's competition.

He patented Tribound 12 years ago but has only recently been trying to raise its profile in the UK. It is an interactive, three-dimensional board game played with two dice and two players. Success is dependent on both luck and strategy.

The aim of the game is to get pieces into your opponent's home, while safeguarding your own. Much of the winner's fortune depends on the luck of the throw.

Organiser Vicky Mardall, 30, said: "People take to the game very quickly. There are only nine rules to learn. You play it once and you know it.

"Luck is an important part of the game. Even if you are the most tactically aware player, you might not win if you are unlucky with the dice."

Each game of Tribound takes an average of 20 minutes to complete and it is suitable for children aged 10 and above.

At the moment, the game can only be bought from Tribound's website at www.tribound.co.uk for £15 .