Western Australia Roller Derby Explained

WA Roller Derby
Founded:	2009
Metro Area:	Perth, Western Australia
Country:	Australia
Teams:	WARDs of the Skate (A team) WayWARD Rollers (B team) Electric Screams Sonic Doom Atomic Sirens
Tracks:	Flat
Venue:	Rolloways O'Connor, Rollerzone Malaga, The Rise, Maylands
Affiliations:	WFTDA

WA Roller Derby (WARD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Perth, Western Australia. Founded in 2009, the league is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).^[1]

History

WA Roller Derby was founded in August 2009 and held their first friends and family bout in May 2010.

WA Roller Derby's first public appearance was in Adelaide 2010, during the Great Southern Slam competition.^[2] Following this the first season saw three bouts between the home teams, Electric Screams and Sonic Doom at the Perth SpeedDome.^[3] WARD also coordinated the state’s first interleague bout which was held in Kalgoorlie.^[4]

WARDSs of the Skate, the representative A team, was formed in May 2011 to compete against Perth Roller Derby at Quads of War, Perth’s first ever inter-league event.^[5] In July 2011, WARD hosted WA's first ever interstate roller derby bout, against Melbourne-based South Sea Roller Derby.^{[6] [7]}

In July 2012, WARD was accepted as a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association Apprentice Programme,^[8] and became a full WFTDA league in December 2014.^[9]

, WARD have two home teams and one travel team.^[10]

Participants

WARD allows admission of any able-bodied individual, regardless of their current skating skill level.^[11] "Freshmeat"^[12] members are taught basic skating skills (such as stable forwards skating and safe falling) before being assessed for their suitability to move on to more complex skills (such as full-contact Blocking). WARD is a women-only league; however other genders are welcome to join the Freshmeat training with a view to eventually joining the referee program and becoming part of "Team Zebra".

Teams

WARD is currently the home of three teams: one travel teams and two home teams:^[3]

• WARDs Travel Team: formed in 2018 from the merger of WARD's A and B teams, they are the representative interleague team.
• Sonic Doom: formed in 2010, the 'Dooms' are one of two home teams. Their colours are blue and black.
• Atomic Sirens: formed in 2016, the 'Sirens' are one of two home teams. Their colours are red and grey.

Former teams

• WARDs of the Skate: formed in 2011, The WARDs of the Skate (or WotS) were the representative A team. They merged with the WayWARD Rollers in 2018.
• WayWARD Rollers: formed in 2012, the WayWARD Rollers were the representative B team. They merged with WARDs of the Skate in 2018.
• Electric Screams: formed in 2010, the 'Screams' were one of three home teams. Their colours were gold and white. The Electric Screams last played in 2016.^[13]

WFTDA rankings

Season	Final ranking^[14]	Playoffs	Championship
2015	256 WFTDA^[15]	DNQ	DNQ
2016	182 WFTDA^[16]	DNQ	DNQ
2017	110 WFTDA^[17]	DNQ	DNQ
2018	254 WFTDA^[18]	DNQ	DNQ

See also

• Sport in Western Australia
• Roller derby in Australia

External links

• WA Roller Derby League
• South Sea Roller Derby League
• Perth Roller Derby League

Notes and References

1. Web site: Western Australia Roller Derby – WFTDA. wftda.com. WFTDA. 15 April 2017.
2. The Great Southern Slam . Hit & Miss . 3 . 2010 .
3. News: Shake and rattle roller derby a hit for violent femmes . The West Australian . 8 August 2011 . 7.
4. News: Roller Derby delights goldfields crowds . 16 February 2011 . . Kalgoorlie, Western Australia . 15 January 2012.
5. News: Big crowd rolls in for derby showdown . 16 February 2011 . . 15 January 2012.
6. News: Big crowd cheers on all-star stouch . 19 July 2011 . Midland Kalamnunda Reporter . 12.
7. News: Lean, mean rolling machines go into battle . 9 July 2011 . . 15 January 2012.
8. "WFTDA Accepts 35 Apprentice Leagues", WFTDA, 16 July 2012
9. Web site: WFTDA Welcomes 29 New Member Leagues - LatestNews - Women's Flat Track Derby Association. wftda.org. WFTDA. 15 April 2017. 22 December 2014.
10. https://www.facebook.com/wardstravelteam/
11. News: Roller derby a natural high . 16 February 2011 . . 15 January 2012.
12. News: Soozie skates way out of suburbia . 7 September 2011 . Mandurah Coastal Times . 17 January 2012.
13. Web site: Electric Screams | Roller Derby Stats & Rankings | Flat Track Stats.
14. "Current Rankings", WFTDA
15. Web site: Rankings: December 31, 2015 – WFTDA. wftda.com. January 2016. 6 July 2019.
16. Web site: Rankings: December 31, 2016 – WFTDA. wftda.com. 6 January 2017. WFTDA. 6 July 2019.
17. Web site: Rankings: December 31, 2017 – WFTDA. wftda.com. 5 January 2018. WFTDA. 5 July 2019.
18. Web site: Rankings: December 31, 2018 – WFTDA . wftda.com . 7 January 2019 . WFTDA . 6 July 2019.