Roller derby is played by more than 1,000 amateur leagues across the world, and this year will see the first ever roller derby world cup, in Toronto Canada, December 1-4, It will be the biggest roller derby competition ever held, dwarfing both the European Championships and the USA Nationals in scale.

In the early part of this year 6 Rainy City Roller Girls attended the Team England try-outs in Manchester: Missy Rascal, Dee-Mise, Morgue Anna, Belle-Istic, R.E.D and Feral Fairy. The Rainy’s Travel team consists of 12 regular girls, this means half the team put themselves up for selection. An incredible statement for any sports team.

Under the watchful eye of the Team England coaches they were assessed and ranked. 4 Rainy City skaters were invited back for stage two. Some weeks later, the final selection lists were posted, and 3 of the 6 Rainy City Roller Girls made it onto Team England: Missy Rascal, Dee-Mise and Feral Fairy. Shortly afterwards, Feral Fairy departed Rainy City for pastures new, joining Leeds Roller Dolls.

Read Missy Rascal’s interview with derbylife .

Read Dee-Mise’s interview with derbylife .

The Roller Derby world cup will be a far cry from the more famous football one. For starters, all the competitors and a good chunk of the referees will be female. There will be no six-figure sponsorship deals and certainly no paid-for flights. The girls will have to fund the majority of their expenses themselves. Few derby teams have large sponsors and fewer still receive any outside support.

Rainy City Roller Girls are proud to support Team England in the Blood and Thunder World Cup, Toronto, December 2011. If you love derby and want to do the same, please help the team to get there, by donating .

Many thanks to the Oldham Evening Chronicle for publishing this article.