Battling hockey club is ready to roll again

After a tough two years, the Kwinana Roller Hockey Club is calling on the community to dust off their skates and get ready to roll.

The club was given a helping hand by the City of Kwinana last week when it decided to scrap last year’s fees and heavily reduce its 2013 costs in a bid to get the club back on its feet.

The club, which once operated at the Astroskate venue, had to relocate for the construction of the Zone Youth Space and experienced a downturn in membership.

Club president and coach Jamie Reid said he was grateful for the decision.

He said the club started in 1981 and grew to have a 70-strong membersip before 2009 when the refurbishment began.

“There have been certain difficulties we have encountered,” Mr Reid said.

“Because there was no venue available when the old one was being refurbished, we had to travel to Armadale to use the recreational centre. But it was only available to us on a Sunday at 8am.

“It drastically affected the membership of the club — we went down to about 12 people.”

When the Zone Youth Space opened, Mr Reid said the club was looking forward to building its members again but struggled.

“Our difficulty was letting people know we were open,” he said.

“We are now the only remaining roller hockey club in WA, so it is important we build up our numbers so we can have an internal competition.”

An experienced skater, Mr Reid said roller skating was a healthy safe sport and perfect for all seasons. He urged all in the community to give skating a go.

The club is hoping to re-open general skating at the Zone on Fridays from 7-9pm and Saturdays from 1-3pm in May.