Going into this bout the Harbour Hellcats had already secured their third consecutive series victory over the Fort Smashleys so it was effectively a dead rubber bout but both sides weren’t treating it as such, neither the crowd as the venue was at capacity once again. To make the night even more amazing it also marked the bouting debut for Champain Showers for the Hellcats and Billy T Maims, Thunder Slut, and Synysta Sk8s for the Smashleys.

Just like with every other bout in the series both sides went flying out of the blocks eager to make an impression. The opening few jams were quick jams which were called off before either side could pick up any points. Synysta Sk8s got off to a great start as she smashed Susy Pow to the ground with a great hit. Susy recovered to get lead jammer but then got smashed again, this time by Lady Quirkinator as she was left to call off the jam from the floor.

Thunder Slut was powering her way through the pack as she got into a footrace with opposing jammer Babycakes to try and get lead jammer which Thunder ended up winning. The Hellcats C-Bomber went for a massive hit on Thunder but instead ended up doing a massive air swing and kept going which almost resulted in both herself and referee Terence Trent Derby ending up in the crowd. The crowd were absolutely lapping all the action up!

Booga took out blocker Glitter N Gore on her way through to getting lead jammer but then skated into the formidable human wall that is GodJilla Sold Separately. Try as she might Booga couldn’t get past her and was eventually sent to the penalty box for a track cut after Jilla knocked her off the track with a hip check. Being the agile and elusive jammer that she is, it’s no surprise that Susy Pow gets a lot of attention from the Smashley’s blockers, this time it was Fannie Tastic coming in with the big hit. As always Susy picked herself up and did her favoured apex jump which got a massive roar from the crowd and helped the Hellcats extend their lead to 20-15.

Jilla lined up on the jammer line for the first time that night to massive applause but it was all Defcon Dani as she glided around the Smashleys wall with ease to pick up more points for the Hellcats while Jilla was sent to the penalty box for back blocking. Fannie Tastic was containing Booga extremely well which allowed Belt’er Goodrem the time and space to get lead jammer. The Hellcats regathered themselves then surrounded Belt’er on her next pass through the pack that she could not make any further progress that she was forced to call off the jam.

Billy T Maims spotted Susy Pow coming through on the inside to do her apex jump and completely smashed her, then to add insult to injury got done for track cutting. Harms Way managed to get through the pack after some great support from her blockers despite the Hellcats forming a wall at the front of the pack. Harms Way played smart by calling off the jam just as Susy got back onto the track as the Smashleys hit the lead 33-30.

There wasn’t any slow starts or scrum starts in the bout which was allowing the bout to be played at a moderately fast pace with no shortage of action. C-Bomber and Baroness von Brutal formed a wall of resistance at the front of the pack which repelled Smashleys jammer Luna Shovegood every time she attempted to pass them. During the jam Luna got hurt that she was barely able to stand on her skates let alone engage in any hits and the Hellcats knew it as they only had to skate in front of her to keep her from getting through. While I applauded her for fighting on while being hurt, tactically it might have been better to take a knee and allow a new jam to start because the Hellcats opened a 59-33 gap on the Smashleys.

Fannie Tastic was getting in Booga’s way again while Jilla was smashing her way through the pack and picking up three points along the way against a back drop of massive cheers from the crowd. Jilla then went from jammer to blocker in the next jam as she skated backwards at the front of the pack to get right in the face of Hellcats jammer Babycakes and preventing her from getting past.

The Smashleys were starting to get back into the bout but then it all went horribly wrong for them as Fannie Tastic fell which left a gap in the pack, as her fellow blockers shifted on the track to cover the gap it left more than enough room for Defcon Dani to go through untouched. The Smashleys then saw their jammer sent to the penalty box. The Hellcats then gradually slowed down the pack until they were at a full stop on the track which allowed Defcon to keep picking up points with each pass. By the end of the jam the Hellcats were further ahead 85-44.

The Hellcats went with a no pack start as Susy went flying past the jammer line only to come face to face with Jilla. It wasn’t until Hellcats blocker Rum n Rola came into shepherd Jilla from Susy that she was able to get around her. Both sides went with a slower start in the next jam but there were still hits and falls galore as Babycakes and Belt’er raced to get through the pack first. Babycakes won only to come face to face with who else but Jilla. Despite doing her best to get around Jilla, Babycakes couldn’t do it. Realising resistance is futile she ended up calling off the jam with a smile on her face only to be rewarded with a slap on the backside by Jilla! The Hellcats finished the half strongly as Defcon Dani bamboozled the Smashleys with great footwork as her team mate Betty Bedlam successfully held back Beaver Destruction. The first half ended 109-48 for the Hellcats.

Just like the previous two bouts there wasn’t a huge difference between the two sides skills and experience wise. The major difference was that the Hellcats kept punishing the Smashleys on power jams. If the Smashleys could keep their skaters on the track long enough then it would be anyone’s bout.

The Hellcats started the second half as they finished the first half. The Hellcats had a power jam as Smashleys jammer found herself in the penalty box which allowed Susy to pick up points like they were going out of fashion but then she got done for back blocking. Almost as soon as Beaver Destruction was back on she took a hit and fell on her shoulder quite heavily. She was taken off the track by St. John’s and unfortunately that was the end of her night.

The Smashleys tried clawing their way back as they managed to slow the pack down to a complete standstill to allow Belt’er to pick up some much needed points for them. Both sides found themselves two blockers short which created space on the track as Defcon Dani dummied Jilla. Not to be outdone Jilla pushed her team mate Fannie Tastic into Defcon’s path to stop her from getting through.

Thunder smashed past Susy to get through the pack first but did not get lead jammer due to picking up a minor penalty on her way through. Jilla was still at her intimidating best as she got right in the face of jammer Champain Showers so that she couldn’t get past which then forced her to call off the jam to stop Thunder from picking up any points.

Booga got lead jammer with ease as the Hellcats opened up a gap in their wall to let her get through and from there the Smashleys were playing catch up for the rest of the jam. Harms Way was doing well to try and stop Booga and then the ever reliable Lady Quirkinator came in to take over to stop Booga but she ended up being sent to the penalty box. By the end of the jam the Hellcats had extended their lead 159-66.

Susy tried to get through the Smashleys wall but ended up back blocking two of the blockers that the entire wall fell down like dominos. Just as soon as Belt’er got lead jammer she was taken out by Betty Bedlam. Belt’er was getting hit by the Hellcats blockers left, right and centre and was contorting like Gumby but to her credit she was still on her skates despite the attention she was getting.

Champain Showers and Jilla lined up on the jammer line with Jilla turning into a fifth blocker right from the get go as she tried to stop to Champain’s progress. The Hellcats had the measure of Jilla as their blockers completely swamped her that she couldn’t get to Champain which allowed her to get lead jammer. The Hellcats then targeted Jilla for the rest of the jam by taking turns to hit her to slow her down and it worked.

Jilla was stopping the Hellcats jammer’s progress which allowed Synysta Sk8s the gap she needed to get through and get lead jammer. Waiting for her though was Babycakes who waited for the right moment to knock her down as she was coming around the bend. Lady Quirkinator demonstrated her high fitness levels by doing squats while she was waiting in the penalty box to be allowed back onto the track.

Commentator Mal Adjusted told the crowd that the highest jam ever scored was by Suzy Hotrod who scored a 40 point jam just a few weeks before. With the score at 180-91 it was going to take a few of those sorts of jams to get the Smashleys back into the contest and time wasn’t on their side. Unfortunately the Smashleys couldn’t capitalise on the power jam they had as the Hellcats blockers led by Rum n Rola and Reggie Ramjet played amazingly well to contain Smashleys jammer Nay Palm.

Both sides were still battling hard as Synysta Sk8s got done for back blocking, while for the Hellcats Tootsie Turbo fell down and tripped Glitter N Gore with a low block. Skaters kept rotating in and out of the penalty box which caused the pack to lose any sort of formation. Babycakes took advantage of the confusion by picking up points as the jam went for the full two minutes with the Hellcats further extending their lead 198-108.

The Smashleys went with a no pack start which was followed by a massive collision as both sides attempted to form a pack. Defcon Dani found herself sent to the box for a track cut. Schmierer passed the star to Jilla but she ended up being sent to the box which cancelled any advantage they may have had. Harms Way and Schmierer were defending well at the front to stop Defcon from picking up more points.

The last jam of the night was as quick as the opening jam. Booga got lead jammer while Susy tried getting in the face of the Smashleys blockers but ended up being bent backwards from the Smashleys blockers counter-blocking her. Booga called the jam and the bout off just as Jilla was coming back onto the track as the Hellcats skated away to another victory 207-108 in what was another highly entertaining series played out between the two sides. Player of the bout went to Rum n Rola for the Hellcats and Nay Palm for the Smashleys.

NRDL’s representative side the Dockyard Dames will be participating in the upcoming Great Southern Slam. Show your support by grabbing a player postcard. The next Smashleys vs Hellcats series kicks off on the 28^th July. Will the Hellcats claim their fourth straight series or will the Smashleys stop the Hellcats dominance? See for yourself!

Words by Lisbeth Slammed-her, pictures by Nick Sullivan Images.