I've been along to roller derby before but it was along time ago in a land far far away. I enjoyed…read moreit then and I enjoyed it now. Manchester Roller Derby has the added interest of being a part of an active co-ed league. We went along to this their 5th anniversary bout. They were in a local leisure centre on this occasion (Carnall George H in Urmston) not the most convenient spot in Manchester but accessible by a combination of tram and bus. I don't believe this is their home track but I get the feeling the bouts tend to move around with the availability of track space. There was a pleasantly large crowd but there were still plenty of seats and loads if visibility onto the track. They had supporters stalls for all the teams playing on the day with surprisingly desirable merch (especially the supporter t-shirts with your fave competitors name and number on the back) and a cake stall for celebratory birthday cake. A double header between Manchester / Wirral and Manchester / Birmingham was on the cards for the day and we set up shop in the stands. The supporters are an enthusiastic bunch and I found myself clapping and cheering for all the teams (though I should have been supporting MRD primarily). One of the fun trademarks of roller derby are the fun antics and the payer names which were not lacking. With pseudonyms like Fish 'n' Whips, Jim Jams (who was a Jammer and was wearing pyjama bottoms), Veggie Kray, Smack Bauer, Knit One Hit One and Steph Leopard. They had a pass the parcel game in the stands, a raffle for merch and a 'Throw a Duck' comp in the half times. If you've never been along to roller derby it's a full contact, fun and active sport to watch and the basic rules are simple enough to pick up in a couple of minutes explanation. I do recommend heading along to a bout and throw some support behind a local sport team in an fresh and interesting non mainstream sport. No paid endorsements or hefty salaries here they do it because they love it and it's really good fun.

Dela salle fc is a fantastic club, football starts from 4 yr old holding group all the way up to…read moreopen age. The club is run profesionally and has been awarded charter standard development status from the FA. Please visit our website http://www.delasallefc.co.uk for more info