MURDERBALL!
Murderball,more politely known as Wheelchair Rugby (or in the USA as Quad Rugby) is definitely the most violent and aggressive Para sport, and arguably the most exciting to watch.
On Friday 14th August my family and I watched the Para-Pan Wheelchair Rugby finals in Mississauga.
It was amazing!
Each team puts four of its 12 members on the court in manual wheelchairs. The athletes, who have impairment of at least three, and often all four limbs, try to take possession of the ball and glide across the goal-line with it. The opposition team tries to prevent them, sometimes by blocking the goal area, other times by ramming into the wheelchair of the person with the ball. The game is punctuated by the thwack of wheelchair colliding with wheelchair, and by short breaks while someone who has had their wheelchair knocked completely over is pulled up and continues to play.
The first match was Brazil v Columbia, playing for the Bronze medal. This gave us a chance to learn the rules and the common plays. For example, players can pass the ball forward to a team mate who is hanging around by the opposition goal. If that player gets control of the ball he can swiftly glide over the goal line and score, as there is no defined goalkeeper. If a player in midfield is heading for a goal, the other side will try to intercept and ram him, but if he gets a lead it seems impossible to overtake him in the relatively short length of the court.(Incidentally, the game is open to both sexes, but in the 2015 Para-Pan games only Columbia had a female competitor, and we never saw her on the field.)
It was a very close match. Columbia’s #3 player Juan Ochoa Rodriguez, seemed unstoppable, and helped them win the bronze medal by 50 – 48.
Then it was USA v Canada playing for Gold, and automatic qualification for the Paralympics.
Canada scored the first goal in seconds, then the US scored 5 in a row. They kept that 3 – 4 goal lead all through the first two quarters.
The crowd was mainly Canadian but the visiting American supporters were impressively loud, especially as the USA was winning.
In the third quarter Canada caught up. The US would be one goal ahead, then Canada would have the throw-in and equalize. The US would throw-in next and score again. And so it went on until the period ended at something like 35 -35. At the start of the final quarter Canada managed a three goal lead, much helped by Zak Mandell, who scored 34 goals in total. The small lead was nice but not large enough to be really safe. The Canadian team held on to the lead until we were winning by 54 -57, then they just passed the ball back and forth for the dying seconds of the game. The capacity crowd went wild as the final whistle blew and Canada secured the gold medal.
The tickets, behind the goal, cost $25 for both games. There was free parking at Iceland, across from the stadium. What a bargain for four hours of intense entertainment!
No-one in my family is a great fan of spectator sports, and we have never had anything to do with any of the “Para” sporting events, but this was thrilling and spectacular. Our congratulations to all the athletes, but especially to the Team Canada Wheelchair Rugby players.Thanks for winning Canada another gold!
If you ever get the chance to watch a Wheelchair Rugby game, go for it!
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