Fancy A Schnipps With The Street Roller Hockey Chix?

When I first proposed to chat with Lingsi Lu and Leanor Barz from the Street Roller Hockey Chix for this month’s column, I thought, “these chix are going to be sooo out of my league”’ I mean, they marched in Mardi Gras dressed as bin chickens – the club’s mascot! But I think, instead, I might have stumbled upon the most delightful (non-organised) sporting league there is. 

Street Roller Hockey Chix Pride Themselves on Inclusion

Like so many of our LGBTQI+ sporting clubs, the Chix got their start when a group of friends decided to meld their teenage hobbies – roller-blading and ice hockey. 

Completely at odds with my preconceptions, Lingsi and Eleanor were quick to stress how beginner-friendly their sport was. The Street Roller Hockey Chix, and their friends throughout the league (you’ll find no rivalries here), pride themselves on inclusion, welcoming all women, trans- and non-binary individuals. 

Believe it or not, their’s is a non-contact game, and score blow-outs are ‘against the rules’. Delightful, right? There are no designated surface requirements and no referees, and two milk crates cut in two suffice as goals, which is pretty great considering the competition for fields and courts here in Sydney. But I think my favourite feature is that, should you fall over – which I almost certainly would – the game stops and you get the puck! 

Schnipps = A Casual Drop-In Game

What’s this about schnipps, I hear you ask? That’s Chix speak for a casual drop-in game. Follow the Chix on Instagram for the near-weekly callouts. Don’t have skates or a stick? Let them know in advance and they’ll sort something out. 

And if you thought the Chix appeal couldn’t get any greater, puntastic team names rule the tournament roster. The basketball courts and back-alleys of the Inner-West have been graced by likes of the Summer Hills Hoists, the Bronte Sisters, and the Newt Kids on the Block, as well as Peter’s Hams, the Pyrmont Puckheads, the Botaknee Scabs, and the Tempe Tapeworms. 

If you like what you see, then avoid disappointment by clearing 31 October. That’s right, the Halloween fancy dress schnipps is the pinnacle of the Chix calendar. I know I’ve already started on my costume!

You, too, can connect with the Chix on Instagram @srhcclub. Just do it!