The Weyburn Strait Jackettes will be rolling onto the concrete floor of the Weyburn Curling Rink as they take on the Prince Albert Outlaws for their lone home game of the roller derby season on Saturday, Sept. 29.
The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and the game will get underway at 7:30 p.m. A 50-50 raffle will be available at the game, and in memory of Neal Keefe, the proceeds from this will be donated to the Weyburn Hospital Foundation.
The team is coached by a past star of the roller derby team, Tonya Miller (Mokelki), who noted this home game comes at the end of their season.
Asked about the Outlaws team, Miller said, “They should be a hard match for us. We played last weekend against Swift Current, and we beat the spread of what we were expected to perform at. We performed a lot better than was anticipated, so it’s expected we should beat Prince Albert — but you never know, such as if a jammer has a really tough game.”
The captain of the Strait Jackettes is one of the founding members of the team, Krista Sandney, and they will have a bench of nine or 10 players, depending on who’s healthy and good to go.
“Typically we’ll have four blockers and a jammer. When you have nine or 10 players, there’s quick shift changes going on so we have two different lines and two jammers alternating. The girls get quite a bit of playing time,” said Miller.
Part of the responsibility for how the team is managed will fall on her shoulders, as she’ll need to make strategic time-outs to give the girls time to get enough rest before getting back into the action on the floor.
“It’s just really fun. The girls train all year for this, so hopefully there will be lots of points scored,” she added.
As the team is a little smaller this year, she hopes the home game will help garner some interest for new people to be involved with the team.
“We had fewer numbers this year,” she said. “There seems to be a flux of players in the last couple of years. We’re always looking for new members who want to be a skater or to volunteer or be a referee. It’s a great program to be involved in.”
She added they have a need for more volunteers for the home game, such as for non-skating officials or to help with sales at their table.
Tickets for the roller derby game are $10 for adults, and children 10 and under get in for free. The event is licensed, and there will be food available by Mo’s Catering.
