The Jakey Bites: One Year On

To celebrate the recent birthday of The Jakey Bites – Scotland’s first Men’s Roller Derby team – we caught up with team skater, Duff McKeggar, to hear about their year so far and their plans for the future. The Jakeys will play their first headline bout at home this coming weekend, so this is a perfect opportunity to learn more about the team before heading along to Grangemouth to show them your support!

In just over a year, The Jakeys have gone from being a “ragtag collection of male referees” from the existing female leagues, to a dedicated team of 22 skaters who travel all over the UK to compete.  They’ve come a long way since heir first training session in a cold airport hanger in Perth in January 2012!

First Training Session: Alan Watt, Marco Vezzani, Martin Willox, Chris Riggeling, Iain Elstone, Dan Blake, Jazza Crawford, Gregg Pearson, Graeme Clark

When the news of a men’s roller derby team in Scotland broke out, enthusiastic male skaters emerged from the derby community to join the 9 refs - a mixture of husbands of female skates, friends of skaters, or those who had watched a bout a thought “I want to try that!”.

The newly-formed team didn’t waste any time in lining up their first bout, despite having barely enough skaters to fill the roster and only recently having passed their minimum skills test. So on 21st April 2012, The Jakey Bites traveled to Newcastle to take on their men’s team: Tyne & Fear. With their bright orange t-shirts, a Rab C. Nesbitt team logo, and a bus-load of supporters, The Jakeys made quite a first impression! The team never won their first bout but that didn’t matter – this was their exploration into the unknown territory of Men’s Roller Derby and getting a glimpse of what the future could hold for them.

Tyne and Fear vs The Jakey Bites, photo courtesy of Tyne and Fear

As well as the brightness of their uniforms that day, the team’s merchandise for sale also raised a few eyebrows. Emblazoned across the back of the t-shirts were the words “Scottish All Stars”. When I asked Duff McKeggar where this name came from, his answer was far less controversial than many had assumed! Duff explains, “It’s pretty much an in-joke. The Jakeys have always based ourselves on the featured team from the movie Rollerball (I must admit I’ve never seen it!) and apparently they are known as ‘The Houston All Stars’ so when we were designing our first t-shirt print run, Scottish All Stars was jokingly mentioned as a possible back print and it stuck!”. Simple!

Coincidentally, there has been a lot of talk recently about standardizing National Team Selection on the UK Roller Derby Association (UKRDA) website, so we were keen to hear if The Jakey Bites had any plans to live up to their All Star title and become the official national team. I must admit, I was disappointed when Duff said the The Jakeys would never be officially recognised as the ‘Team Scotland’ of men’s derby, but he did reassure us that – when the time comes – the roster will hopefully feature a large number of Jakeys.

But before we look too far into the future, let’s look back at what The Jakey Bites have achieved in their first year. By far their most memorable moment was playing in their first public bout against Tyne and Fear after only a few months in existence, explains Duff. The Jakeys also organised and hosted the hugely successful Sur5al tournament in December last year – a knock-out competition of mixed teams of 5 skaters from teams all over Scotland.

Sur5al Tournament, photo courtesy of Claire Brunton of Zenspirations

On a personal note for Duff, he recalls his biggest achievement with The Jakey Bites: “I was delighted to play in the Tyne and Fear bout after only a month of skating which was made all the sweeter by getting the Best Jammer award!  Playing in Scotland’s first men’s derby and co-ed bouts was also a great achievement”.

After their first bout in April 2012, it was full steam ahead with The Jakeys playing 4 more bouts away from home; opening a double-header event for Glasgow Roller Derby in June; and joining force’s with Dundee Roller Girls in the first co-ed bout in Scotland.

The Jakey Tayzers vs The Silvery Bites, photo courtesy of The Jakey Bites

2013 already looks to be very busy for The Jakey Bites – and we’re only in April! There is talk of a Men’s European Roller Derby Tournament taking place later this year, and Duff hopes to see The Jakey Bites in the line-up to showcase the Scottish talent. If we know the The Jakeys, they should have a busy bouting calendar lined up, and hopefully more of these played at home. Duff also ranks their “elusive first win” as a huge priority for the coming year!

With so many more bouts in the pipeline, the question on everyone gent’s lips is: “How do I become a Jakey Bite”? The answer is simple: Duff recommends that you contact the team via their Facebook Page to get more information about their training commitments. Even if you train with the team, your place still must be earned by a rigorous team selection process, with the final decision being with the Captain.

If the prospect of jumping right into a bouting team  isn’t quite what you’re looking for – any one of the regional men’s teams would be happy to sign you up and put you through your paces. Duff explains that The Jakeys “have fully embraced the new leagues and are happy to see men’s derby in Scotland growing so quickly. As the Jakeys are more of a collective than a league we’ve never really had a consistent fresh meat program whereas now the local leagues all have first rate fresh meat programs so ongoing we have a wider pool of talent to choose from”. Duff himself is one of the founder members of Capital City Roller Derby in Edinburgh, and many of his fellow Jakeys are involved with the new leagues in one way or another.

For now, Duff and his teammates are focusing all their efforts in organising and training for their first headline bout that will be played at home on Saturday 6th April.  We’re intrigued to see The Jakeys in action again, especially since Duff lets on that “anyone who hasn’t seen us for a while will be very pleased with how far we have come in such a short time”. He is looking forward to having a loyal home crowd behind them, and hoping that they will put on a good show!

The coming year promises to be very exciting for The Jakey Bites – and Men’s Roller Derby in Scotland – and we can’t wait!

The Jakey Bites play South Wales Silures on 6th April in Grangemouth. Tickets are available to buy online – visit the Facebook Event for more details so you don’t miss out on the action!

 

Lets hear it for the boys…..

A female perspective on Merby and CO-ED Roller Derby.

Up until the past couple of years Roller Derby has been a sport ‘rolled’ out on a predominantly female playing field. There have always been men around, be it in an official capacity or those of the infamous derby widow – ship.

However those who wished to play on a competitive level have taken the proverbial bull by the horns with Merby leagues are popping up all over the UK. Scotland in Particular has no less than 4 up and coming all male leagues. Their collective bouting team the Jakey Bites have been established for over a year now.

The arrival of Men’s Roller Derby has been met with mixed reaction on roller derby scene, some embracing it fully and others feeling a little put out that the male specimen are perhaps trying to steal our feminine thunder………God can’t they let us have anything!?

Being part of a league who have taken to Integrating with open arms, I have had a fantastic opportunity to skate and compete with the some of the Jakey Bites in the past year, skating in the Uk’s first ever CO-ED derby bout with The Jakey Tayzers last September.

As a result I have become a keen supporter for CO-ED and men’s roller derby. The thought of this might seem a bit overwhelming for some but I believe it can make you a more rounded and skilled skater in the long run. I have skated for 2 years now, predominantly in all female training and bout situations and I thought I would take this opportunity to answer some of the questions or allay some of the fears people might have about Male and Co-Ed roller derby.

DO THEY HIT HARDER?

I hate to emasculate anyone here but the answer to this is not really. I have found that taking a hit from a guy is no different from being hit by the girls. The fact that they don’t really have hips takes a bit of getting used to but the impact of the hit isn’t as scary as it might seem.  Put it this way, if you have ever been hit by Cider from Auld Reekie then you have nothing to worry about and are fully prepared…

ARE THEIR TACTICS DIFFERENT?

Whenever we first started training for the CO – ED bout this was definitely one of our questions, in all honesty we thought for some reason they were going to be all offence and no discipline (not sure why, guess we were stereotyping). This wasn’t the case at all; for the most part their tactics are exactly the same as what we are doing on the female side of things. They are definitely very skilled and know their stuff; I didn’t find it any different from skating with my female team mates. They have had to adjust to the new rule set exactly the same as we have. From watching various Merby bouts last year there really wasn’t much difference in the tactics played and there certainly wasn’t any less glitter surprisingly.

IS IT AWKWARD?

As we all know, roller derby can be a very ‘handsy’ sport, it is full contact and I suppose it would be normal to wonder if it gets a bit awkward when playing CO-ED. This one is really in the eyes of the beholder to be honest, I personally haven’t ever felt awkward or anything likes that whilst skating. Whether that comes from knowing them quite well or from being in the zone on track I’m not sure but it certainly has never been an issue. You know the bond you have with your team mates on track, well that bond is completely possible in CO-ED as well and it is a pretty gratifying experience.

ARE THEY BETTER THAN US?

The answer to this hangs on the word better; it’s not so much a case of better as different. Roller derby caters for differences; it’s one of the most appealing aspects of the sport which is known for celebrating individuality. In some cases they may be a little stronger and taller than us but……being a big player or a hard hitter isn’t the be all and end all if you are smaller and faster. In truth they are as varied and unique as we are on the female side of things. Tall, small, fast, strong, hard-hitting, positional and/or agile everyone has strength it’s just finding out how they compliment each other.

ARE THEY JUST A BUNCH OF “LADS?”

Cracking dirty jokes and messing around? As for the dirty jokes I know some female skaters who could make them blush……….But in all seriousness the answer here is no. They are 100% dedicated to the sport and the progression of their regional leagues, the passion they have for the sport is no less than we have in the female leagues and the drive they have shown in starting from scratch has been nothing short of impressive. As a female skater they have always been nothing less than welcoming and supportive of me and since skating with them I have seen a real improvement in certain areas of my skating.

From a personal perspective I am fully in support of Merby in the UK. I would urge everyone to support their local Merby league alongside their local derby league, Capital City in Edinburgh, Mean City in Glasgow, The Skelpies in the Central Belt and The Tayminators in Tayside. I have had the pleasure of knowing people from most of these teams and can tell you they are a cracking bunch of guys, we should be proud to have them as a part of the Scottish Roller Derby scene. I hope to see a lot more CO-ED action in the future with my Jakey Tayzers. The Skelpies League, Bairn City are already establishing a Co -Ed league so it is onward and upward.

If you want to make up your own mind or have a male friend you’d like to wrangle into taking up the sport, the Jakey Bites (Comprising of members from 3 out of 4 of the aforementioned teams) have a bout coming up against The South Wales Silures on April the 6^th in Grangemouth. Check their Facebook page for event details and ticket sales. The venue only holds 100 so buy in advance to avoid disappointment. Bairn City men’s team will also be playing South Wales the day after on the 7^th at the same venue, for more details and ticket sales check their Facebook pages.

http://www.facebook.com/events/122071404642449/      (SKELPIES VS. SILURES)

http://www.facebook.com/events/432929060108875/     (JAKEYS VS. SILURES)

The Jakey Bites vs South West Silures

On Saturday 6th April, The Jakey Bites – Scotland’s All Stars – will take on South Wales Silures at Grangemouth Sports Complex.

Although The Jakey’s have played in a few bouts now, this will be their first Scottish Headliner! Their previous bouts have seen them travel to Newcastle in their debut; they opened Glasgow‘s Home Seasons Tournament in 2012 with a bout against The Inhuman League; and have also played in a co-ed bout with Dundee Roller Girls.

Tickets will be available for £6 online – link to follow. Keep an eye on the Facebook Event for more details.

The Jakey Bites vs. The Inhuman League

On Saturday 30th June from 12:30pm, The Jakey Bites will play their first home-game in Glasgow!

In their third bout in a matter of months, The Jakey’s will take on Sheffield’s The Inhuman League in a double-header, kicking off Glasgow Roller Derby‘s Home Seasons.

For advanced ticket sales, visit  GRD’s Home Seasons Facebook Event.

New Wheeled Order Vs The Jakey Bites

New Wheeled Order vs The Jakey Bites – Image courtesy of Manchester Roller Derby

On Saturday 9th June, Manchester Roller Derby will be hosting an action-packed double header.

First up, MRD’s Checkerbroads take on Gloucester’s Severn Roller Torrent. But the main event for fans north of the border will be the men’s bout: New Wheeled Order versus The Jakey Bites. This will be The Jakey’s second live bout, so why not organise a road trip and show them your support?

Tickets are available now online: £7 adv, £6 concessions, £10 on the day – under 10s get in free! To keep updated with the latest news on both bouts, visit the Facebook Event.

Bout Report: Tyne and Fear vs The Jakey Bites

This is a first on the Scottish Roller Derby Blog… Men’s Roller Derby! The Jakey Bites, Scotland’s first export of “merby” or “broller derby” (my personal favourite!), travelled south of the border on Saturday 21st April to take on Newcastle’s Tyne and Fear.

The Jakey Bites hail from all over Scotland and are a mixture of Roller Derby Referees and enthusiastic new skaters. After just a few short months of training together, The Jakey’s put on a valiant display of grit and determination when up against Tyne and Fear. The home team were keen to continue their winning streak by notching up their fourth consecutive triumph in their first bout played at home.

The support for The Jakey Bites was unbelievable. Despite playing away from home, it was noted by the announcers that the Scottish crowd were louder than the Newcastle supporters! With fans holding up hand-made posters for their favourite players, and shouting encouragement to their team throughout, the whole experience was incredible!

Well that’s enough of the soppy stuff, so now on to the action!

Tyne and Fear vs. The Jakey Bites, photo courtesy Graeme Wharton

Tyne and Fear:

• #82 Captain: Man shaped Dog
• #26 Alternate: Chemic-Al
• #4J Reanimated.GIF
• #5 Da Little Waster
• #22 Rubba Duk
• #v1 Dark Matter
• #14pt Markoleptic
• #8 Porky
• #511 Gay Fawkes
• #1701 Jams T. Kirk
• #80 Adsinthe
• #2×4 Man From Del Munky
• #13 Pablo Diablo
• #64 Sixty Quad Bit

The Jakey Bites:

• #IQ0 Captain: Genuine Miller Draft
• #8 Alternate: Skol-Krushr
• #Red5 X-Kaliber
• #19 Judder Jam
• #6 Bruise Dog
• #N7 Crash Effect
• #4 Brutally Frank
• #9 Diamond Fight
• #57 Absolute Bar Steward
• #18 Tequila Jammer
• #11 Fool Throttle
• #39 Duff McKegger
• #2 Danny Desperado

Period 1

The first jam went off to a flying start, with Captain Genuine Miller Daft from The Jakey Bites lining up with Tyne and Fear’s Da Little Waster. Tyne and Fear chose to play the tactical, and now popular, Jammer-Line start to set both jammers off quickly and get the action underway – a move that would be repeated throughout.

In the opening minutes of the game, one of Tyne and Fear’s most dangerous weapons was quickly revealed: Dark Matter. In the second Jam, he flew around the track clocking up a 30-point jam, but not without being challenged by The Jakey’s Skol-Krushr first. An ill-timed block from the Pivot-cum-Jammer, after a star pass from Tequila Jammer, saw Krushr taking a trip to the Sin Bin for a back block major penalty.

Dark Matter takes on The Jakey Bites, photo courtesy of Graeme Wharton

Not to be disheartened, The Jakey’s very quickly appeared to let go of their first bout nerves, with some excellent defensive walls displayed by Diamond Fight, Fool Throttle and Crash Effect. Duff McKeggar and Absolute Bar Steward took on the offensive role, and were breaking down the Tyne and Fear walls to help their Jammer through the pack to score some points.

After being on the receiving end of powerful hits from Reanimated.GIF, Porky and Rubba Duk, The Jakey’s got a chance to retaliate in Jam 5. Bruise Dog returned to the track from the sin bin, shortly followed by the opposing Jammer, Man Shaped Dog, being sent off for a major penalty. With strong offensive action from X-Kaliber, Bruise Dog took full advantage of the Power Jam and clocked up The Jakey’s first points of the game.

Jam 5: Tyne and Fear 80 – The Jakey Bites 10

The Jams that followed showed just why Tyne and Fear are holding on to their winning streak. Despite impressive 3 and 4-walls from The Jakey’s Blockers, and aggressive jamming from Duff McKeggar, The Jakey’s struggled to keep the opposing Jammer back to protect the points difference. Whenever a Jakey wall was looking to be particularly effective, the Tyne and Fear Blockers quickly changed their strategy to break the walls and clear a path through for their own teammate.

Much to the delight of Scottish announcer, Helliverance, quite a lot of major penalties were committed by both sides, often resulting in power jams. When this happened, the “sausage” tactic was played well by the advantaged team, and it was in this very situation that The Jakey’s earned their first Lead Jammer status. Genuine Miller Daft started Jam 12 on a lonely Jammer line, but with help from Danny Desperado making holes in the pack, Miller made his way through opposing Blockers Porky and Man Shaped Dog, picking up more points for his team. After a team time-out followed by an official time-out, the visitor’s scores were adjusted to award them 2 extra points.

Jam 12: Tyne and Fear 176- The Jakey Bites 21

Skol-Krushr from The Jakey Bites was unfortunately finding himself on the receiving end of some pretty big hits, and despite a nervous moment when he removed himself from the track with an injury, he returned unfazed as Pivot in Jam 14. Krushr’s quick-thinking was put to the test when The Jakey’s Jammer was sent to the sin bin, but was released early when Tyne and Fear’s Jammer, Da Little Waster, was also issued a major penalty. Back on track, Genuine Miller Daft saw his chance and grabbed it with both hands, earning his team 3 more points.

With a strong power jam in their favour, The Jakey Bites fielded Fool Throttle as Jammer in Jam 15. Teammates Judder Jam and Absolute Bar Steward were determined to make the most of this advantage, and were giving it all they had to make holes in the pack to help Fool Throttle gain Lead Jammer. This was an extremely intense jam as the Tyne and Fear Jammer briefly returned to track, but was then almost instantly sent back to the bin. The whole time, Fool Throttle seemed to have gotten a good measure of the pack, and was making light work of Tyne and Fear’s defensive walls. When the opposing Jammer again returned to track, Fool Throttle ended the jam just in time, to the chorus of the whole Jakey following shouting, “Call it off”!

Jam 15: Tyne and Fear 218 – The Jakey Bites 39

Fool Throttle powers through the pack, photo courtesy of Graeme Wharton

With two Jams remaining before half-time, a tactical call-off by Lead Jammer Sixty Quad Bit with two of his Blockers in the bin, stopped The Jakey’s in their tracks after only scoring 1 point. In the final Jam of the first period, TAF’s Jammer, Adsinthe, increased the points difference, but kept an eye on the opposing Jammer the whole time and called off the jam – but not before Skol-Krushr collected an extra point.

Half time score: Tyne and Fear 237 – The Jakey Bites 41

Period 2

Although starting Period 1 apprehensive, The Jakey Bites gathered more confidence as the bout progressed, put their strategies into play, and gave out as good as they got! This attitude carried into Period 2, with X-Kaliber claiming the coveted Lead Jammer status in the first returning jam while Brutally Frank kept TAF’s Jammer, Man Shaped Dog. The excitement was short-lived as X-Kaliber was sent to the bin, but Frank, Danny Desperado, Bruise Dog and pivot Genuine Miller Daft created a solid 4-wall in the power jam in an attempt to control the points difference. Just as X-Kaliber returned to track, the jam was called off with The Jakey’s scoring just 3 points to TAF’s 30.

Duff McKeggar takes on Man Shaped Dog, photo courtesy of Graeme Wharton

Jammers Skol-Krushr and Da Little Waster started off strong in Jam 19, with Tequila Jammer, Judder Jam and Diamond Fight forming a strong defensive wall to hold the TAF Jammer on his first pass. Tyne and Fear quickly found themselves with the advantage of a power jam as Krushr was sent off for an elbows major, followed by blocker Absolute Bar Steward for an illegal clockwise block. TAF’s pack advantage was quickly lost as Da Little Waster was sent off for a back block major but then was whistled again for insubordination after failing to leave the track quick enough. With a 2-minute penalty now issued, Referee, The Enforcer, really lived up to his name!

Jam 19: Tyne and Fear 287- The Jakey Bites 44

Genuine Miller Daft started off on the jam line alone in jam 20, and managed to pick up 4 points for The Jakey’s despite the offensive ‘hammer and nail’ technique displayed by TAF’s Pablo Diablo, Markoleptic and Rubba Duk. A switch of jammers in the penalty box saw Da Little Waster score 21 points then calling off the jam just as Miller Daft returned to track.

The next few jams were played very quickly and were loaded with points for Tyne and Fear who broke the 400-point barrier! Although The Jakey’s showed real determination and team work, they were understandably struggling to close this huge points difference. By this point in the game it was obvious that both teams were having a great time out on track – regardless of the score – and were commending each other with hugs and high fives between  jams.

Jam 29: Tyne and Fear 401- The Jakey Bites 48

Jam 30 saw the power jam advantage go in the favour of Tyne and Fear again when The Jakey’s X-Kaliber was binned after (a bit too) aggressively jamming his way through the pack. Although TAF Jammer Man Shaped Dog skated fast through his initial pass, it wasn’t clean and he was ‘Not Lead Jammer’. While The Jakey’s tried hard to hold him behind their wall at the front of the pack, X-Kaliber snuck onto the track unnoticed, picked up 3 points, was declared Lead Jammer, then ended the Jam.

With only a few more jams remaining, both teams were literally throwing themselves into the competition! Da Little Waster for Tyne and Fear impressed the crowd again with his speed and light footwork, resulting in an impressive grand slam. Not to be outdone, Vice Captain Chemic-Al scored a whopping 34-point jam, with this kilt blowing in the breeze the whole time!

Jam 32: Tyne and Fear 488- The Jakey Bites 51

Chemic-Al showing off his kilt! Photo courtesy of Graeme Wharton

Dark Matter helped his team break the 500-point barrier in Jam 37 after scoring another 20 points. He seemed to skate right through the walls that The Jakey’s were putting up! In the dying minutes of the game, Jakey’s X-Kaliber and Skol-Krushr worked well to take the speed from the TAF jammers, with Krushr even taking out Markoleptic in the final jam. Even with the considerable points difference, The Jakey’s put up a fight right until the end.

 Full time score: Tyne and Fear 536 – The Jakey Bites 54

The Awards

For Tyne and Fear:

• Best Jammer: Dark Matter
• Best Blocker: Porky
• Most Valuable Player: Chemic-Al

And for the Jakey Bites:

• Best Jammer: Duff McKeggar
• Best Blocker: Brutally Frank
• Most Valuable Player: Genuine Miller Daft