2017 D1 Playoffs Malmö Game 13: Stockholm vs. Kallio

Stockholm Roller Derby (#7) vs. Kallio Rolling Rainbow (#9)

The passionate crowd at the 2017 International WFTDA Division 1 Playoffs Malmö witnessed the third Swedish victory of the weekend as Stockholm beat Kallio 184–166 in a fun, fast-paced but penalty-ridden game. In yesterday’s game against the London Rollergirls, Denver Roller Derby managed an entire game with only nine team penalties, but today you didn’t have to wait too long to see that total surpassed, as both teams combined for 79 penalties.

The game started with back-to-back power jams for Stockholm as A.M. Chaos posted nine points before good offense by Linda allowed Lil Slinky to pick up five more. The shaky start and early penalty struggles would come back to haunt Kallio as Stockholm jumped out to a 27–0 lead, a points haul that would prove crucial by the end of the game.

Both teams were prepared to run jams long and at a fast pace. Twice throughout the game the packs were sped up and neither jammer was able to catch up and score. The Scandinavian pace was a stark contrast to the British grind witnessed in the London vs. Rainy City game.

Sarah Gilbert began to work her way into the game early on. Standing tall, bouncing off blockers, and posting six points before her fellow jammer Kaaos saw a gap on the inside line and with a handy assist from a teammate’s shirt whipped past the pack and out for another three points.

Penalties continued to stall momentum for Kallio as a blatant cut by Kamasuttura provided another power jam for Stockholm. Skandi Crush cleared the lane allowing Panica De Hex to pick up nine points and Stockholm took a 34 point lead at 44–10.

Stockholm was having penalty trouble of their own as a Panica forearm penalty allowed a power jam and a subsequent power start for Kallio who gratefully piled on 23 points across the two jams with good offense from 103 allowing Sarah Gilbert to score heavily.

Maurine Filip took the long way round on turn two and picked up a quick score for Stockholm but it was the next jam that epitomised the frantic nature of the early exchanges. Kallio quickly found themselves with only one blocker on the track after a flurry of penalties and Lil Slinky scored 13 points but the Kallio box emptied just as the Stockholm skaters began to pick up penalties of their own. Big hitting by T-Bag helped Kamasuttura with a huge smile on her face to pick up 19 points to take the score to 65–52 with 10 minutes left in the first half.

The close bout, combined with two local teams — local in derby terms — had the excitable crowd impatient for more. An official review was greeted with shouts of ‘less talk, more derby!’ and both teams were happy to oblige. Excellent transition from defense to offense by Vattuvimma freed Sarah Gilbert as Stockholm’s pack lost shape and Kallio took their first lead of the day 65-66.

Stockholm responded with Maurine showing great strength, bludgeoning her way through three blockers whilst Arnberg kept the Kallio trapped as the lead swung back to Sweden. Some jammer-on-jammer blocking and a quick ‘hit and quit’ by Lil Slinky took the score to 76–66 with five minutes to half time.

Another power jam for Sarah Gilbert took her individual points total to 42 before a chaotic sequence of penalties saw both teams exchange heavy scoring passes and took the scores to 102–90 at half time.

Stockholm came out strong in the second half, posting a quick 11 points with Ylva Arnberg shielding her jammer and creating an inside lane for Maurine. A two minute jam saw some fast paced scoring as both jammers cut through the opposition packs for a combined 27 points. Another exchange of scores took the score to 133–111 with 20 minutes remaining.

Both teams were playing a sense of a fun and an energy that matched their vocal fans in the crowd. The game felt evenly matched with both teams continued to trade leads and scores until Kallio penalty trouble allowed Lil Slinky the space to showcase her skills. One apex jump was quickly followed by a juke and duck as Stockholm took the largest lead of the game at 150–115 with 15 minutes left in the half.

Kallio responded and were rewarded by their decision to run the jam long with Gilbert lead. Maurine Filip took a trip to the box and Kallio was able to add a huge 16 points that were in vain today but will be a fillip for their rankings going into the 2018 season.

Time was running out and the exchange of scores was keeping the game close but preventing Kallio from closing the gap. They received a boost by stealing four points when not lead before Gilbert on another two minute jam was able to post 13 points. The scores were perilously close and Stockholm was grateful to a huge hit from Skandi Crush, which effectively ended the scoring when it looked like Kallio would gain the upper hand in the game. Undeterred, Kallio posted three more points in the next jam to cap a 39–7 run in just under nine minutes and take the scores to within three at 157–154.

To protect their slender lead, Stockholm turned to their key pack of Ylva Arnberg, Swede Hurt, Skandi Crush, and The Incredible Fox. It may leave their other pack a little under strength but being able to roll out a key line up in crunch time has real benefits. Lil Slinky again was the beneficiary of their pack work and Stockholm picked up 19 unanswered points to effectively end the tie. With time running out Kallio battled for every point but ultimately came up short at 184–166.

FINAL SCORE

Stockholm Roller Derby (#7, WFTDA #20) 184
Kallio Rolling Rainbow of Helsinki, Finland (#9, WFTDA #29) 166

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