As always there was other shenanigans that went on that I couldn't put on the review but could put here. It all started before I even got inside. RDAU had my name on the door because I was doing the review so I had to sign a media form and got given a media pass. It all felt surreal, it was like I was important or something haha. I would have a done a review on my own blog if RDAU hadn't asked me to do it for them.
Ness and I walk in and who do we see at the merch stand but CASS! She was working the merch stand that night. I can't help but smile when I see her, she's always doing something derby related. I picked up some merch for Mon and another Smashleys shirt for myself because I was hoping to get the Smashleys to sign my other shirt.
I kid you not it was humid as buggery that night. I was sweating just standing there, kudo's to all the skaters and ref's that night for coping with the temperature. As for the bout itself it was another cracker of a bout. I think in future all NRDL should carry a health warning in their bout programs. They love nail biting bouts up there. It's bad for your heart I tell ya haha. This bout went down to the last jam just like their bout against Adelaide and it also required an official time out to sort out the final score.
I probably look like an absolute loony when I watch their bouts, I'm trying to cheer/yell either the Smashleys or Dames on (when they bout) while madly scribbling down notes in my notebook for the review. There's been a couple of times when I've had paper flying everywhere. I have enjoyed doing the reviews, I'll keep doing them for my blog next year unless RDAU need me to fill in for them or NRDL tell me that the reviews suck and I'll stop. Being a lifelong Liverpool supporter I've grown up appreciating tactics and I've found that by doing these reviews I tend to look out for tactics and patterns when I watch a bout. It's another reason why I love NRDL they employ a lot of tactics in their bouts so I have an absolute field day doing their reviews. Here's a funny fact, in this last season the Smashleys had a 0% win rate with Jilla in the side. She played in the first and third bout which the Smashleys lost both bouts but they won the second bout when she was on the sidelines. Please don't kick my arse Jilla haha. Speaking of Jilla I can finally carry on a conversation with her without going all shy and fangirly around her, yay for progress :)
At the end of the bout I walked up to Jilla and gave my Smashleys shirt to her to sign. Ness who was wearing her Hellcats shirt gave Jilla a hug, I wouldn't have blamed Jilla for decking her since the Smashleys lost in controversial fashion :P While the Smashleys were signing my shirt I had to go off and get some interviews for the review. Here's where I hit a stumbling block, I'm notoriously shy and rubbish at interviews. I was trying to pull questions out of my arse and wanting to go and try and interview either Dino la Rouge, Booga or The Cramp but I was too shy to actually go up to them. Bloody hell, I eventually found the guts to go up to The Cramp and ask her a couple of questions.
Once the interview was over I went over to pick up my signed shirt and while I was standing there admiring it DangeRass came up and started talking to me. She asked me if I was the one who wrote the blog (what I wouldn't do to have the same reputation for my bouting skills). I've never spoken to Danger before so it completely threw me that she even knew about my blog. While I was still coming to terms with the fact that she was talking to me she was giving me positive reviews about my NRDL reviews and how I picked up how her and Jilla work off each other on the track, I thought it was common knowledge. She also said that although Jilla was my favourite skater I wrote balanced reviews and didn't just favour Jilla's side. I was still in shock but also over the moon that my reviews were appreciated by the guys I was writing about. As for the signed shirt here's a pic and thanks heaps to the Smashleys for signing it :)
Since Ness and I were staying overnight we decided to go to the after party. Wasn't that one big epic fail. We got there and we were too shy to talk to anyone. It's not as if they were snobs or unapprochable, I just don't have it in me to butt in on a group conversation and start talking to people I've never met before. Eventually we both felt tired and gave up trying to get over the shyness and left. I also had to get up and watch Liverpool's match at 3:30am, yep I was jumping up and down and cheering on Liverpool at 3:30am from a hotel room. What a weekend. I can't wait to do it all again next year :) (hopefully I'll actually have a conversation at the after party haha)
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