A few of the Nessies went to Dundee last Friday and did some scrimming with the lovely Dundee Roller Girls. We were made to feel really welcome by all the girls and had an excellent time, we literally buzzed all the way home so thank you Dundee! :-)

As for what we have up our sleeve for this coming year, 2013 is going to put NNRG on the map so keep your eyes peeled.

Next month's retrospective will be by Natorious Red!

On Sunday 7th April, the Bairn City Rollers will play host to the South Wales Silures in Grangemouth Sports Complex.

This will be the debut bout for both The Bairns men's team, 'The Skelpies', and the Silures - so it's not to be missed! Tickets are available online from Brown Paper Tickets.

See the Facebook Event to keep up-to-date with the bout details.

Auld Reekie Roller Girls present the second bout of this years Home Season,with a match between The Cherry Bombers and The Skatefast Club. The bout takes place at Meadowbank Sports Centre,London Road,Edinburgh on Saturday the 16th of February.Doors open at 2pm and entry is £7 on the day,or £5(plus booking fee) in advance. More details at the Facebook event page.

The Scottish Roller Derby community has traditionally comprised of female-only teams. Well, 2013 is the year where all that will change!

We gave you a sniff of Men's Roller Derby last year with the introduction of The Jakey Bites - Scotland's All Star Men's Team, and as seems to be the way with the sport, this single team has inspired other competitive skate-loving people to get involved! Four offspring leagues have now been born, covering Glasgow & the West; Edinburgh & the Lothians; the Forth Valley; and Tayside & the North East. We expect to see a lot more from each of these leagues over the coming year, so now is your chance to swat up on Who They Are and Where They Come From!

We caught up with reps from each league to learn a bit more about them and how you can contact them if you're interested in joining their ranks.

Capital City Roller Derby

An interview with Tequila Jammer

When was your league founded, and by whom?

Officially Capital City Roller Derby was launched in December 2012 (making us the newest men's league) but informally it's been around for a little longer. It was founded by a bunch of Jakey Bites players (Judder Jam, WKDeid, Genuine Miller Daft, Tequila Jammer, Duff McKegger and Panda). I guess the birth place of Capital City was in Deans Community High School car park on a cold Sunday morning after training, Bairns and Mean City were established and we thought... why not. All of us had skated for a long time with the Jakey Bites and were up for the challenge of starting our own regional league.

What area of Scotland do you cover?

We cover mainly the Edinburgh and the Lothians but we have some seriously committed skaters who travel from Fife, the Borders and the Falkirk area.

What made you decide to start up the league?

Men's Roller Derby in Scotland was beginning to take off in a big way with the formation of Mean City, Bairn City Rollers and The Tayminators - it made sense to have a league in Edinburgh. Edinburgh is already well established in the derby community and having strong links to other leagues is important to us. I guess we just want to be part of that spirit and prove we are a capable league who take the sport seriously but know how to have a good time as well. The founders have a clear passion for the sport and, honestly, we can't get enough of it!

Tell us about your plans for 2013, and where you would like to be by this time next year?

2013 looks to be a busy year for us. We have started regular training and are looking to recruit new members and Fresh Meat. From that we hope to gain new members and start to develop a seriously kick ass team as playing some hard hitting, epic men's derby is our ultimate goal.

Like we said before, building links with other leagues is very important to us as well as promoting men's derby. Hopefully this time next year Capital City will have gone from a small bunch of Jakeys to a cohesive team of awesome individuals. Also skating (and winning) a bout or two would be pretty sweet.

How can people contact you if they would like to join your league?

Potential awesome Fresh Meat can contact us through our Facebook Page, e-mail us directly (capitalcityrd@gmail.com) or if you see one of our friendly faces at local bouts don't be afraid to come up and say hi. Also, if people love men's derby but playing doesn't appeal to them, there are lots of ways of getting involved. Leagues wouldn't exist without an awesome NSO and Ref crew.

Bairn City Rollers

An interview with Mega Blocker

When was your league founded, and by whom?

Bairn City Rollers was founded in September 2012 by myself and iHorror (Anthony Sweeney). We were the first men’s league to be established outside of the Jakey Bites Scottish All-Stars.

What area of Scotland do you cover?

As the name suggests, we are based in Falkirk area but that stretches to all of Central Scotland. We have had some enquiries from Edinburgh and Glasgow but we tend to point these guys to Capital City or Mean City, and that has also been reciprocated.

What made you decide to start up the league?

I wanted a 'Fresh Meat'. I had went along to the Jakey Bites NEDS (non-experienced derby skaters) but I couldn't keep up. They are a great bunch but it wasn't what I needed. I had not long taken up skating and had heard great things about the FVRG Fresh Meat programme and thought that it sounded perfect for me, so BCR was born. iHorror and me had a few people interested – in the main people who had never skated so we set about getting things together. We held a launch party and had our Fresh Meat the week after. It’s been awesome!

Tell us about your plans for 2013, and where you would like to be by this time next year?

Well, our first bout – the first male league bout ever in Scotland – is happening on April 7th at Grangemouth Sports Complex, Skelpies against South Wales Silures. That is exciting and terrifying in equal measure but the help we have had from other leagues has been awesome. We also have another couple of bouts lined up but I’ll keep them close to my chest at the until they are signed up.

The other huge thing that happened very late last year was that we went co-ed. The girls in the league are awesome and they are going to have some big news very soon - they would kill me or at the very least flatten me on track if I told though!

The next 12 months are going to be very busy. We will be looking to grow our skating pool, we have Fresh Meat this Sunday (3rd February), and are busy getting the boys bout ready. We have a brilliant social night coming up at Stenhousemuir Cricket Club with Magic Pete on 1st March, new Skelpies t-shirts and then a big charity event in April.

We've had brilliant support from the derby community and will hopefully repay that by supporting other leagues as they bout, so you can expect to see us at bouts supporting FVRG, DRG, GRD, ARRG & Mean City to name but a few!

How can people contact you if they would like to join your league?

Via our Facebook Page or Twitter is the easiest. If people are interested, it doesn't matter if you can skate - all that matters is that you want to join the most awesome sport and bunch of people ever!

Mean City Roller Derby

An interview with BruiseDog

When was your league founded, and by whom?

August 2012 by BruiseDog 6 (Jason Crawford) & Stan Lee Knife 7 (Colin Selfridge)

What area of Scotland do you cover?

Glasgow and the West of Scotland.

What made you decide to start up the league?

I had always wanted to play Roller Derby, however there were not options for men to play in Scotland at the time. So I became a referee as Partick Skateman for the then Glasgow Roller Girls (now Glasgow Roller Derby). I met Three Majors (Colin) whilst reffing and he mentioned that there was interest from many referees and derby widows in setting up a men's league, perhaps not enough to cover Glasgow but on a wider scale across Scotland.

We both became founding members of The Jakey Bites (Scottish All Stars); we always had the intention to form a Glasgow Men's league but we realise it may take a little longer to raise the profile of Men's Roller Derby in Scotland. We knew that there were a lot of misconceptions regarding men in the sport and we needed to let the female leagues know we were serious about this and we were going to treat the sport with the respect it deserves.

After The Jakey Bites had grown, we had gained a lot of bout experience and players - a lot of whom could not face the long drives to Perth where The Jakey Bites trained. We decided it was time to start the first regional league and formed Mean City Roller Derby with some of our teammates from the Glasgow area.

We now have 10 skating members and 1 non skating member due to injury, but that has not put him off. We have regular hall space and three 2 hour practices per week. We are very active in the derby community and often visit other leagues to train, and we also host co-ed skating skills sessions.

Tell us about your plans for 2013, and where you would like to be by this time next year?

2012 was very much about the foundation of the league. 2013 will mostly be about growth. We had our first Fresh Meat intake on the 26th of January at the ARC - a familiar location for those attending Scottish roller derby bouts. We will take on new skaters at any level of skating experience and give them an introduction to roller derby, plus teach them some of the basic skills needed to play the sport. This will be followed by a full newbie intake program for those that would like to stay on and learn the sport.

We hope to have some bouts scheduled in later in the year, starting with some of the local Scottish men's leagues which have recently formed.

How can people contact you if they would like to join your league?

Anyone that is interested in skating with us can drop us a line at meancityrollerderby@gmail.com, or get in touch via our Facebook Page.

The Tayminators

An interview with Danimal

When was your league founded, and by whom?

The league is still in the process of starting up. It was founded by me, then shortly afterwards I had Phil (Optimus Grime) on board to get things going.

What area of Scotland do you cover?

We aim to cover all areas in the Tayside region and we are most likely going to be based in Perth and/or Dundee - although we have a few skaters wishing to be part of The Tayminators from as far as Aberdeen! So I guess we're mostly the North East of Scotland.

What made you decide to start up the league?

The idea actually came from Stan Lee Knife (aka 3 Majors/Skol Krusher - a man of many names!), Bruise Dog of Mean City RD, and my Jakey Bites teammates. They suggested that I put the wheels in motion for a team to cover my area now that the local teams are coming together in Glasgow, Falkirk and Edinburgh.

Up until now there has only been one team in Scotland, the Jakey Bites. When we started a year ago we had to pull together from across the country to form the numbers and to bring the men's game to the table. Now we are looking to expand and the local teams will most certainly do that. It doesn't mean the end of the Jakey's though! It's just the beginning for Scottish Men's Derby in general!

Tell us about your plans for 2013, and where you would like to be by this time next year?

2013 is definitely the year for Scottish Men's Derby to step up and be counted!

For The Tayminators, 2013 is the year we are going to put in the legwork to form a dedicated team and train hard to be ready to take on all challenges presented to us! I'm excited to get going! This time next year we hope to have a bouting team, possibly with a game or two under our belts! (As well as the after parties!)

How can people contact you if they would like to join your league?

The most convenient way to get in touch is on our Facebook Page. If anyone is interested, we'd love to hear from them! We are going to have our first meetings and training sessions very soon.

Although we are a men's team, all are welcome to train with us (male and female) so if anyone from any league fancies an extra chance to skate, they are welcome to join us to train and learn. Of course, we welcome anyone that can share their experience too.

Cherry Bombers Best Blocker Maulibu Barbie watches out for the Leithals' Sharlotte Fever, jamming.

Saturday 19th of January saw the first public bout in Scotland played under the new WFTDA rules. Most famously, these rules remove minor penalties in favour of a streamlined officiation process where only major penalties can be awarded; however, they also make a host of other changed, including starting both the pack and the jammers on the same single starting whistle. Auld Reekie started their home season last year in the first third of the year as, amongst other things, a way to warm up after the Christmas/Hogmanay break, but the timing this year has been particularly advantageous, giving them also a chance to get more practice with the new rules before bouting against other leagues.

This first bout saw last home season winners, the nautical/steampunk themed Leithal Weapons, up against "zombie highschool" themed Cherry Bombers. Both teams were playing with a reduced roster, with the Bombers particularly affected, down to only 9 skaters, and one of their star jammers, Circuit Breaker, suffering from the flu. The skate-out can be found here.

From the start, the Leithal Weapons pulled out an initial advantage, ARRG star jammer Admiral Attackbar (11:11) and vice-captain Alma Geddon (42) both scoring in the initial jams, to bring the score after the first 4 minutes to a 13 to nil lead. Nevertheless, 13 points is nothing at the start of a bout, and the Bombers looked like fighting right back when new skater Para'beat'em'all (62) took lead jammer in the very next jam... only to pick up a track cut major during her scoring pass just before trying to call the jam off! With the power-jam for Leithals new skater Sharlotte Fever (1924) to exploit, things went from bad to worse for the Bombers, a chain reaction of penalties resulting in, at one point, only Teenie Bash (208), ex of Fair City Rollers, on the track to oppose her. Hampered by their reduced roster, the Bombers were unable to recover quickly from their penalty situation, with the penalty box refilling as overstretched blockers picked up more penalties before their comrades could escape to join them. The Leithals capitalised, pushing the score into triple figures with multiple power jams before Teenie Bash finally managed to score for the red team,

6 Cherry Bombers : 115 Leithal Weapons

still with around 12 minutes left in the period.

VIDEO

A power-jam for Circuit Breaker, brought a much needed boost in the underdogs' score, almost tripling it to 16 before she called the jam. The Leithals struck back immediately, however, with Yin and Bang effortlessly taking lead jammer the very next jam, while Teenie Bash struggled for some time with an imposing front-wall masterminded by Leithals pivot Admiral Attackbar, although both jammers were held well on their scoring passes, Velosidy exerting herself particularly to hold back the opposing scorer. Still, Teenie managed to pick up a single scoring pass, to be followed by a second magnificent display from Circuit, taking lead jammer and sneaking in a single scoring pass ahead of an accelerating Alma Geddon in hot pursuit.

That was the final scoring pass for the red team this period, though, with the final 8 minutes dominated by the Leithal Weapons once more, thanks partly to a recurrence of the Bombers' penalty issues from earlier on. Playing with such a reduced roster was telling on their skaters, allowing the Leithals to dominate the track.

By the end of the period, the score stood at an intimidating

24 Cherry Bombers : 216 Leithal Weapons

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Half-time saw the second appearance of Sing in the City at a bout, an Edinburgh-based modern choir and Auld Reekie's regular half-time entertainment for this Home Season. Beginning with a medley including "Auld Reekie", the reworked version of "Hey Mickey" that serves as Auld Reekie's anthem, the choir moved on to Coldplay's "Viva La Vida", a safe choice for a modern choir's first opening to an audience.

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Ciderella chases down Circuit Breaker in one of the several jammer-on-jammer duels in the bout.

Returning from half-time, the Cherry Bombers faced a difficult challenge to win with an almost 200 point deficit. In fact, an almost immediate power jam for the Leithals once more, Circuit Breaker (100) spending time in the penalty box, whilst Yin and Bang (39) racked up a few more points, immediately increased their deficit even more...

The increasingly exhausted Bombers only managing to pick up 10 points in by the end of the third 15 minutes, it was looking even better for the team in blue as they picked up 113 in the same time, bringing the score to

34 Cherry Bombers : 329 Leithal Weapons

A long official timeout sent additional members of both teams to the penalty box and, devastatingly for a team with an already tiny roster, sent Bombers team captain Velosidy off track as she fouled out at her 7th sin-bin trip.

With the Leithal Weapons also down on blockers, however, the very next jam saw Teenie Bash pick up a valuable 3-point pass, albeit the last scoring tha the Bombers would get for the next five minutes. Superior blocking from the Leithals continued to tell, pushing their score closer and closer to a 10:1 ratio, sitting at:

37 Cherry Bombers : 354 Leithal Weapons

with only 10 minutes on the clock.

VIDEO

Just when it looked like the Leithals would actually manage to win with a 10:1 score ratio, a slightly misjudged piece of skating by Alma Geddon, returning from stradding the line to in-bounds to pick up a track cut major, handed the power jam to the Bombers' Teenie Bash, to the loud delight of all of the Cherry Bombers fans in the audience. After getting over her own elation, Teenie capitalised, pushing her team's score up by 10 vital points. After a brief team-timeout, The Bombers maintained their momentum, Circuit Breaking taking lead jammer mere fractions of a second ahead of the Leithals' Ciderella (3), and engaging in a protracted and close-fought defensive jamming duel before calling it off. With Teenie Bash back on track for the next jam, yet another Leithals track cut, this time by Yin and Bang, handed the her the second power jam of the last 5 minutes, and a 19 point power jam. Just 5 minutes had made Teenie the Cherry Bombers' highest scoring player by a landslide, bringing in more than half of the teams' score for the bout.

With a bout timing issue causing head ref Righteous Oxide to allow one final jam, it was Kaos Moss who took back control for the Leithal Weapons for a final frosting of points, leaving the final score at:

66 Cherry Bombers : 395 Leithal Weapons

The Skater awards were given to:

	Cherry Bombers	Leithal Weapons
Best Blocker	Maulibu Barbie	Minnie Riot
Best Jammer	Teenie Bash	Sharlotte Fever
Most Valuable Player	Circuit Breaker	Ciderella

The next bout in the Auld Reekie Roller Girls Home Season is February 16th, where the Cherry Bombers, hopefully back up to a full roster, will take on The Skatefast Club.

The Nasty Nessies have been writing to their dear monthly diary on the blog now for more than a year. In the spirit of self-improvement and the new year, we decided to go back to the first ever Nasty Nessies diarist, founder Irn Bruzer, and ask her what's changed since she was interviewed way back in 2011.

Irn Bruzer (now with appropriately blue hair!) poses with derby-wife Black Death at their Christmas skate.

So: Way back in October 2011, you told us how Whip It had alerted to you to the existence of Roller Derby; how has the past year changed and affirmed your initial impressions of derby? Well firstly it’s definitely a way to find and make amazing friends. Some of the girls would be the kind you would walk past in the street, but now you wouldn't know where you would be without them! It’s definitely got the excitement and community that you see in the film, just not as much theatrics.

The Nessies have gotten a lot of local awareness from appearing at various events (the Inverness comic con, for example). How hard is it to organise these things, and what's the experience and reaction been like from spectators. Well luckily for us, Comic Con was a huge event already organised. All it took was a few emails and a meeting. It was also even better as we were allowed to skate around the venue which helped greatly with gaining interest. We got a lot of interest but many of them were 16. Hopefully they will keep in the loop for the next two years!

Now the Nessies have a large number of mins-passed skaters, how close do you feel you are to your first bout? Do you have anyone in mind to pop your bouting cherry? 2013 is definitely our year! We have some great newbies who show a lot of potential too. It's taken a bit of time to find our groove but now we have, there will be a Nessie takeover!

Over the past year, what've the best and most difficult things been for the Nessies in general? What advice would you give now to a league just starting out? The biggest issue we have had is recruitment and keeping people! I know all teams go through this, but Inverness just hasn’t been taken by the derby bug yet which is disappointing. We are planning a fresh recruitment drive and we have a few things in the pipeline so hopefully we can get more people on eight wheels! I think the best advice I could give is just constantly recruit, never give up or push it back for a while. You can never have enough people as you never know who you will lose unexpectedly.

Recently, the Nessies popped up to Shetland to help out Shetland Roller Derby training. How does it feel to be at the level now where you can "pay back" to the community by helping out in the same way that GCRG et al helped you out at the start? Our trip to Shetland was fantastic; being on the opposite level was great as we could see how far we have come! We saw some great up and coming skaters up there and amazing determination from some newbies!

Finally, the next year looks like being a potentially exciting one for Scottish Roller Derby in general. What've the Nessies got planned? Now that would be telling wouldn't it! You’ll just have to wait and see!

In our first monthly diary of the new year, we have Fierce Valley's very own bat-winged, pom-pom-antennaed fuzzy^* telling us all about herself, and FVRG's plans for the next few months. Yes, it's ... Evil Moogle!

Evil Moogle takes a break during Fierce Valley's first home bout against Wirral Whipiteres

What first attracted you to Roller Derby?

I honestly didn't know much about roller derby when I went to my first Fresh Meat session. I'd watched "Whip It" and thought that it looked like great fun, but then things always look better in the movies (of course, now I know it's true!) and I really wasn't aware of of a derby presence in Scotland until my good friend Chaos Faerie mentioned going to try it out, see what I thought. This was in the November that FVRG started. The timing wasn't exactly right for me, but six months later (and a persistent Chaos), I decided "why not?" and put my name down for FVRG's very first Fresh Meat session.

Who are your derby heroes?

So many! Kamikaze Kitten of the London Roller Girls. One thing that I love practising is jumping, and she does that amazingly. I'd love to be able to jump like her. Another one would be Alma Geddon of ARRG. She's been a huge inspiration and given so much great advice. But mostly, my derby heroes would be my Fiercies. Without them, I'm not sure how life would be. Definitely a lot more boring, that's for sure! They are an amazing group of skaters, refs and NSO's and I'm so lucky to be able to share the derby experience with them.

Derby names are an important aspect of the sport, especially when you're starting out. How did you choose your name, and how does it reflect your personality on track?

My great friend Mike gave me my name. He's always called me Moogle (I'm a bit of a gamer chick and I used to play Final Fantasy XI a lot). Mostly I think because they're very small, much like myself. But apparently I'm mean to him sometimes, hence the Evil! I guess that reflects my personality on track quite well, I have no problem hitting people! (Legally, of course....).

What was your biggest initial difficulty?

Staying on my feet! I was the original Bambi on ice. It's really only something I got better at about 6 months ago. I couldn't seem to do one dusty bluebells without falling at some point.

Lots of roller girls find it hard not to spread the word about their new sport. How have you been spreading the word?

I basically talk to everyone about it. My family, friends, even my patients! And why wouldn't I? Roller derby is the best sport EVER! It doesn't discriminate against age, height, weight, sex. You get a second family, meet the most amazing people, and become friends with some of the most awesome people you will ever meet.

What’s the most important thing you’ve learnt/ done this month?

To believe in myself. If someone compliments me on my skating, I should accept it instead of thinking they're only saying it to be nice.

What were the most difficult and the best things?

The most difficult thing for me was watching girls that I had skated with at Fresh Meat advance quicker than myself. It was quite frustrating not to be at that same level. But that's the thing about derby, as with any sport, people pick up things, get better at things, at different paces. Me not being able to stay on my feet didn't exactly help. But as the saying goes, slow and steady.... The best thing was making the team for Belfast. It was my first try outs, and to be honest, I wasn't sure I had much of a chance, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. I couldn't sleep that night knowing the names were going to be posted up on the forum. I lay in bed refreshing the page on my phone! And when I saw my name on the team roster, I kept refreshing the page to make sure someone hadn't made a mistake! It was the best feeling in the world. All that hard work had paid off.

What's new for the Fierce Valley this month?

Well, we're just back to normal training after a few weeks "off". We've just nominated our Captain and Vice Captain for the next six months, ahead of our bout on February the 16th against Preston Roller Girls. We've also just had try outs for this (eek!), so no doubt there'll be lots of intensive training sessions. Or should I say more intensive training sessions! And some of us more crazy ones might have just signed ourselves up for Tough Mudder in August....

^*One assumes that the bat-wings, pom-pom and fuzz are artfully hidden in photographs. And real life.

Granite City Roller Girls will be holding their next quarterly Fresh Meat session at the Aberdeen Lads Club (Dill Road) from 14:00 - 16:00 on Saturday 26th January 2013.

Come along and get bitten by the Roller Derby Bug that's sweeping the nation!

All we ask is that you are over 18, have a bit of gumption, a splash of spirit, a dose of commitment and a sense of humour.

We have skates and protective equipment all waiting for you to try on before the Derby Bug bites you and you rush off to buy yourself some pretty new gear :)

Joining GCRG is a brilliant way to get fit and meet new people!

Yes this is a women's sport but GCRG are on the look out for referees, so any guys who would like to get involved in the sport should pop along too!

See You on the Track!!

GCRG xx

Photography by Man On Gerrard

Latest in a series of end of year interviews, this time it's the turn of Krusty Thud, Chair of Granite City Roller Girls to look back over the last year and forward to 2013.

Granite City Roller Girls had a less than ideal start to 2012,with the news of the loss of your bouting venue,after nearly a year without a home,are you any closer to finding a new venue in Aberdeen?

It has been a constant struggle. Alternative venues were approached but we’re very limited with venues in Aberdeen as they are generally too small. We’ve had various support and at the moment we’re in talks with other medias outside Aberdeen. If our current plan doesn’t end positively then we’ll seek help from them. I am limited as to what I can say at the moment but I will keep you posted.

Impressively ,the lack of a home venue did not prevent GCRG having a season,albeit an all away one.With the help of Fair City Rollers,you hosted Granite City's first Intraleague bout in Perth,which featured skaters from every bouting league in the country lending a hand.Were you surprised at the level of support shown by the other Scottish leagues?

I wasn’t surprised but more humbled by the support within Scottish Roller Derby. Slaughtership Down was a fantastic day and FCR were brilliant hosts, the intraleague bout was a cracking way to unite varied talents from various Scottish leagues and give skaters a chance to skate with all levels of skaters. It was also something a little different for spectators. DRG supported us by inviting us to do a double-header bout with them in November, we had a home for the day :D This meant we could invite Newcastle for a return bout, and as you know it turned out to be one hell of a game! DRG did us proud with all the organising and being so supportive.

With road trips to Lincolnshire and Belfast amongst other places,having a GCRG skater carry the Olympic Torch and one of the most nail-biting bouts of the year against Newcastle Roller Girls to pick from,What have been the team's highlights for the 2012?

Despite the lack of venue, GCRG did fantastic in 2012 and indeed we have had many a highlight, all difficult to choose from because there were proud moments in all events. Being able to watch Carolyn (Clinically Wasted) carry the Olympic Torch was amazing, we couldn’t be more proud of her and it was well deserved. Personally I think the Newcastle bout ended 2012 on a huge high for us as it was a 50 point difference last time we played them in Newcastle. And yes - a nail-biter of a finish it certainly was! It proved to us that all the hard work we’ve been putting in is paying off with regards to training and gelling as a team. All members of GCRG are putting in 100% and I am so proud of everyone and their own personal achievements.

GCRG started a rather slick quarterly newsletter in August,how did the idea for that come about and how did you get it up and running?

Lynne (Hugger-naut) came up with the idea and with her past experience of being a journalist and sub-editor, we jumped at the chance. Lynne felt she was unable to commit fully to our Promotions team due to her work and other sporting commitments, so this was her way of helping promote GCRG. Originally it was supposed to be a couple of pages long, but it grew to 8 pages, clearly GCRG have a lot to say! And I am very privileged because I’m allowed a sneak peek before it’s published :D She comes up with ideas and with input and help from members she produces a fun and informative newsletter. It’s great for everyone to get involved in with their thoughts and ideas, and it gives an insight to GCRG and roller derby for our newer members and supporters.

Looking to the future,we have the new rule set on the horizon,are you looking forward to the change to no minors and do you think that WFTDA have been successful in streamlining the game for both fans and skaters?

I was a little apprehensive at first but think it will be quite exciting now the rules are out there. With regards to streamlining I think it will work, but I guess that will become apparent in time. It will be faster game with the elimination of the minors which slowed the game in my eyes. Also it will be a nice challenge for GCRGs referees being bombarded with questions and also the skaters for coming up with some new tactical game plays.

Finally,can you drop any hints about GCRG's plans for 2013?

We have a few away bouts already in the pipeline, one being Tenerife in September, so we’re very excited about that. It will be a nice holiday too. At this moment in time we are restricted with lack of home venue but regardless of this, we will have plenty of bouts in 2012, watch this space! Also, we have our next ‘Fresh Meat’ Saturday 26th January 2013. We have a busy Fundraising team getting ideas into motion to help raise money for all our away games, as we don’t have the income from home games, as well as our charity and community events that we’re heavily involved in. There’s never a dull moment for GCRG and we’re always working and training as hard as we can. We never give up, we love this game and will do what we can to keep on playing it!

Image courtesy of Auld Reekie Roller Girls

Auld Reekie Roller Girls kick off the new year with their second Home Season, featuring a bout between the Cherry Bombers and, last seasons winners, the Leithal Weapons. The action takes place at Meadowbank Sports Centre, London Road, Edinburgh,on Saturday the 19th of January.Doors open at 2pm.Entry is $7 on the day, £5(plus booking fee) for an advance single bout ticket, or there is also the option of a Season ticket, which will allow entry to all Home Season bouts for £15(plus booking fee) Please note, Season tickets may only be purchased up to the first game. More info at the Facebook event page.