In the world of Adelaide Roller Derby (ADRD), often the only thing keeping bouts from descending into chaos are the brave men and women of an elite force of peacekeepers known as Team Zebra. These are their stories...
Team Zebra are the referees who officiate the ADRD bouts, keeping a watchful and judicious eye over proceedings.
Team Zebra member Always Latte says he and his fellow referees have been impressed with the quality of play this season. “Team Zebra is pretty positive about the season so far,” Always Latte says.
“We have had a pretty decent intake of new officials join us from other leagues and the overall vibe is probably the best it's been. We have a fantastic group of people with us at the moment and we're all meshing together pretty well I think.”
With ADRD being a female-skater-only league, Always Latte says Team Zebra is a great way for males to participate in the thrill-a-minute sport of roller derby.
“It all started with my partner, who plays for the Salty Dolls; she took me to the ADRD grand final in 2016,” Latte says, explaining how he became involved in the league.
“She had been involved in roller derby previously in another league when she was a bit younger and I had no idea what it was about. I'd never heard of it before and I thought 'sure, I'll come down and give it a watch'.
“It was quite honestly the best set-up I have ever seen; I had no idea what was going on and by the end of it I was cheering for everybody.”
Always Latte
At the halfway point of the season, just two points separate Mile Die Club and Salty Dolls making for a tight competition as the August grand final quickly approaches. “It's looking very interesting,” Latte agrees.
“I'm in absolutely no position to call anything on who's going to take the top [spot], but it is definitely going to push the skaters to take it up to the next level in the next few games, 100 per cent.
“All teams are very keen constantly and have been working and training flat-out over the past few months, so there's going to be some very intense games coming, that I can tell you for sure.”
Team Zebra operate under the motto of 'Herd Not Seen', words to live or die by when working in the rink. “Personally, I prefer watching and officiating the game [compared to] taking some of those bigger hits, because I definitely couldn't take a hit like they do,” he says.
“It can definitely get pretty intense. Everyone is very passionate and there can definitely be some heated moments, but we all understand where that passion comes from and generally no one takes it personally, and by the end of the bout we're all friends again. We all do it for the love, so we're all on the same page.”
