Rainy City Roller Derby (RCRD) is a flat track

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

league based in

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, wh ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Founded as Rainy City Roller Girls in 2008, the league consists of four adult teams, which compete against teams from other leagues, and a

junior roller derby Junior roller derby is the sport of roller derby, modified for children and adolescents up to 18 years of age. The sport is played in both modified-contact, known as "positional blocking," and full-contact approaches, to facilitate safety across ...

team, Rainy City Juniors. Rainy City is a member of the

United Kingdom Roller Derby Association The United Kingdom Roller Derby Association (UKRDA) is the National Association for roller derby in the UK. The association was formed in 2010 with 15 member leagues, and was recognized by the British Roller Sports Federation soon after. The U ...

(UKRDA) and the

Women's Flat Track Derby Association The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby, and association of leagues around the world. The organization was founded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Co ...

(WFTDA), and served as the host league for the

2018 Roller Derby World Cup The 2018 Roller Derby World Cup was the third international women's Roller Derby World Cup, taking place on February 1–4 at EventCity, in Manchester, United Kingdom, with 38 teams competing. An international roller derby tournament, it was orga ...

League History

The first league in

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

, Rainy City played their first home bout in November 2009, against Leeds Roller Dolls. In September 2011 they opened the "Thunderdome",RCRG, Thunderdome
" RCRG, location of the Thunderdome their own training and bouting venue, in a former

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sports, cue sport played on a Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets, one at each corner and o ...

hall in

which they renovated and made into the 'Bouting venue of the North'.Beatriz Ayala,
Girls get skates on for life at Riley's
, ''

Oldham Chronicle The ''Oldham Evening Chronicle'' was a daily newspaper published each weekday evening. It served the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. There were also four sister editions, called the ''Oldham Extra'', ''Saddleworth ...

'', 14 September 2011RCRG, renovations
" Renovating the Thunderdome In March 2012, the league joined the

UK Roller Derby Association The United Kingdom Roller Derby Association (UKRDA) is the National Association for roller derby in the UK. The association was formed in 2010 with 15 member leagues, and was recognized by the British Roller Sports Federation soon after. The UK ...

. They were accepted to the

WFTDA Apprentice Program The Women's Flat Track Derby Association Apprentice is the program affiliate of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). In operation from 2009 until early 2019, the Apprentice Program served to onboard new member leagues into the WFTDA. ...

in July 2012,WFTDA Accepts 35 Apprentice Leagues
", WFTDA, 16 July 2012 and became a full WFTDA member in September 2013. Rainy City Roller Girls rebranded as Rainy City Roller Derby in 2016, and published their own guide on rebranding an established league. In December 2016, it was announced that Rainy City would host the

, at the

EventCity EventCity Limited was a conference, gala dinner and exhibition venue in Greater Manchester, England. It opened in 2011 and was the largest event venue in the North of England, with four halls and a combined space of . It was closed during 2021 a ...

facility in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

League structure

Travel teams

The league has four travel teams: * Rainy City All Stars (A).RCRD, Rainy City All Stars
, RCRD, Travel team * Tender Hooligans (B, formed 2010)Tender Hooligans
, RCRD, Tender Hooligans * Rainy City Revolution (C, formed 2013)RCRD, The Bet Lynch Mob
, RCRD, The Bet Lynch Mob * Rainy City Rising (D, formed 2018)

Officiating crew

Rainy City have a well-established skating and non-skating officiating crew. Pretty Miffed, the league's Head NSO and WFTDA-certified Level 3 Non-Skating Official (NSO), was on the roster of Officials for the

. Emily of the State and Yvel Saint Laurent (WFTDA level 2 NSOs), were also on the roster.

National Team Representation

League member Missy Rascal was vice-captain for the Team England squad for the

2011 Roller Derby World Cup The 2011 Roller Derby World Cup was an international women's roller derby tournament organized by ''Blood & Thunder'' magazine. Teams of amateur skaters from around the world were fielded to compete for their respective nations. The inaugural 20 ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

alongside Rainy City team-mate Dee-Mise. For the

2014 Roller Derby World Cup The 2014 Roller Derby World Cup is an international women's roller derby tournament organized by ''Blood & Thunder'' magazine. Teams of amateur skaters from six continents compete for their respective nations. The 2014 Roller Derby World Cup is ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

, Missy Rascal returned to the Team England roster, this time joined by RCRD skater Fay Roberts. Rainy City hosted the

and their skaters were dominant in the Team England roster, with the return of Missy Rascal and Fay Roberts who were joined by first-timer world cup skaters Alex Valentine, Alex Wilde, Menace and Philly. Fayetal Blonde and Fisher were in the England training squad. Rainy City were additionally represented by Mattie and Perra Peligro skating for Team Spain, and Dana Scurry for

Team Ireland Team Ireland was a stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series between 1991 and 1992. Owned by Irishman Martin Birrane, the team posted a best finish of thirteenth with driver Bobby Hillin Jr. Winston Cup Series Car No. ...

WFTDA competition

Rainy City played their first WFTDA-sanctioned game in October 2013 against

Glasgow Roller Derby Glasgow Roller Derby is a flat track roller derby league in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 2007, the league consists of two travel teams, three home teams and a skater training course for players and referees. Glasgow is a member of the United ...

. At the WFTDA European Tournament (WET) in

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...

, Sweden, in November 2014, Rainy City went 2-1 with victories over

Copenhagen Roller Derby Copenhagen Roller Derby (CRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 2009, the league consists of two teams, which compete against teams from other leagues. Copenhagen Roller Derby is a member of the ...

and Oslo Roller Derby, followed by a narrow loss to

Bear City Roller Derby Bear City Roller Derby (BCRD) is a flat track roller derby league based in Berlin. Founded in 2008, Bear City is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History The league was founded as the Berlin Bombshells, although it ...

. In 2016, Rainy City qualified for WFTDA Playoffs for the first time, making the Division 1 tournament at Columbia, South Carolina as the seventh seed. During the weekend Rainy City went 2-2 with victories over Steel City Roller Derby (Pittsburgh) and

Santa Cruz Derby Girls Santa Cruz Roller Derby (SCRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league in Santa Cruz, California. The first female, amateur flat-track roller derby league in Santa Cruz, SCRD is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). Th ...

, and losses to

Jacksonville RollerGirls Jacksonville Roller Derby is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Jacksonville, Florida, (USA). Originally formed as the First Coast Fatales, the league became Jacksonville RollerGirls in 2007, and changed to its current name in 201 ...

and Crime City Rollers (Malmö), to finish the weekend in 6th place. At the 2017 Division 1 Playoff in Malmö, Rainy City won their opening game against Calgary Roller Derby Association 324-81, but then narrowly lost their quarter final to

London Rollergirls London Roller Derby is a flat track roller derby league and a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). The league were founding members of the United Kingdom Roller Derby Association (UKRDA). The league has four travel teams ...

, 124-199, to miss Championships. Rainy City ended their weekend with a 258-78 consolation bracket win against

Charm City Roller Girls Charm City Roller Derby (CCRD), is a flat track roller derby league in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 2005, Charm City is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). History and league structure The league was established in ...

. In 2018, Rainy City qualified for WFTDA Playoffs in

A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...

, Spain where they finished in fourth place with a 174-146 loss to

Angel City Derby Angel City Derby is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2006 by a collective of skaters, the league is composed of nearly 200 members divided into four teams who skate on a flat track and compete ...

. The following year, they made it to the 2019 International WFTDA Playoffs in

Winston-Salem Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...

, North Carolina. They faced up to Helsinki Roller Derby first, winning 145-126, before losing to

106-162. They beat

2×4 Roller Derby 2x4 Roller Derby (also ''Dos por cuatro'': ) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Founded in 2010, the league consists of three teams that play against each other: Bully Chicks, Cowgirls From Hell and Blo ...

172-109, leaving them in fourth place.

WFTDA rankings

*Please note that rankings were suspended in March 2020 in light of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. * ''CR = consolation round''

European competition

In 2013, Rainy City came first at the

's " Sur5al" event, Tattoo Freeze 2013.Rainy City Roller Girls Win UKRDA Sur5al at Tattoo Freeze 2013
, RCRG, 15 January 2013 In 2018, Rainy City won the first EuroCup competition, which they hosted in

Trafford, Greater Manchester Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of 235,493 in 2017. It covers Retrieved on 13 December 2007. and includes the area of Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, ...

. The four other WFTDA D1 European opponents were Crime City Rollers,

Helsinki Roller Derby Helsinki Roller Derby is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Helsinki in Finland. Founded in 2009, the league currently consists of three travel teams who compete against teams from other leagues. Helsinki Roller Derby is a member ...

, Stockholm Roller Derby and

Kallio Rolling Rainbow Kallio Rolling Rainbow (KRR) is a flat track roller derby league based in Helsinki, Finland.They welcome anyone regardless of age, gender or body type. Their fundamental value is to accept people exactly as they are and to celebrate the existenc ...

. In 2019 Rainy City hosted the event once again, this time in

Bury, Greater Manchester Bury ( ) is a market town on the River Irwell in Greater Manchester, England. Metropolitan Borough of Bury is administered from the town, which had an estimated population of 78,723 in 2015. The town is within the historic county boundarie ...

. Crime City Rollers,

London Roller Derby London Roller Derby is a flat track roller derby league and a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). The league were founding members of the United Kingdom Roller Derby Association (UKRDA). The league has four travel teams ...

's B team London Brawling,

Auld Reekie Roller Derby Auld Reekie Roller Derby (ARRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded in 2008, ARRD was the first Scottish Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) member. The league aims to create teams with the ...

, Stockholm Roller Derby and

Tiger Bay Brawlers Tiger Bay Brawlers (TBB) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded in April 2010, the league has two teams that compete against teams from other leagues. Tiger Bay is a member of the United Kingdom Roller Derb ...

all took part. RCRD came second, behind

's Crime City Rollers.

European rankings

2012 European rankingsEuroderby 2012
", Euroderby 2012

* Rainy City Roller Girls (A team), finished division 1, 9th (out of 13 teams) * Tender Hooligans (B team), finished division 2, 37th (out of 39 teams)

2011 European rankings

* Rainy City Roller Girls (A team), finished division 1, 7th (out of 10 teams) * Tender Hooligans (B team), finished division 2, 25th (out of 26 teams)

2010 European rankingsEuroderby 2010
", Euroderby 2010

* Rainy City Roller Girls (A team), finished division 1, 3rd (out of 10 teams) * Tender Hooligans (B team), finished division 2, 12th (out of 16 teams)

2009 European rankingsEuroderby 2009
, Euroderby 2009

* Rainy City Roller Girls (A team), finished division 1, 9th (out of 10 teams)

References

{{WFTDA Division 1 Roller derby in England Sport in Manchester Roller derby leagues in the United Kingdom Roller derby leagues established in 2008 Women's Flat Track Derby Association Division 1 Women's sports teams in England 2008 establishments in England