In an unassuming leisure centre on a rather sunny autumnal Sunday morning, Vice Squad are taking on each other behind closed doors and no one is holding back.

Liannarchy, Anna Maul and Cardinal Sim are just a few of the squad names I see as they thunder past.

This is not for the faint-hearted but you may just surprise yourself on the track. Most of these femme fatales on four wheels claim to have never really liked PE at school, so it makes you wonder what brings them to training every week.

This contact sport draws in women from all walks of life. Tall, short, skinny and sporty, you won’t see such a broad demographic of women that are all members of the same team.

What started off as an exhibition sport in America, the roller derby has been welcomed by a group of hardcore women from Croydon. They are punk rockers with fake eyelashes, heavy eyeliner and tattoos during their bouts and scrims, but also full-time charity workers, students and mothers for the rest of the week.

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Croydon Roller Derby (CRD) was founded in the late autumn of 2009. In the beginning they skated where they could, braving the cold and training outdoors but since, they have evolved tremendously. The CRD are split into two teams; the A-Team the ‘Riot Squad’ and the B-Team the ‘Vice Squad’.

Roller derby is one of the fastest growing female contact sport in the world. Interest in organised speed skating races began as early as 1884, when roller-skating caught on and gained popularity. By the 1970s, roller derby had taken a turn into sports entertainment territory, in which teams relished the showmanship and theatrical antics that riled up the crowd. This is still evident nowadays and remains an important part of the sport.

Apocalex, Viki Speedia and Polly Filla. The players adopt a persona to fully immerse themselves into the roller derby and instill fear into their opponents.

Jam-packed full of action, bouts and scrimmages (scrim) are the appropriate names given to their public games and roller derby practice sessions. The game lasts one hour, with two thirty-minute halves, split into two mini jams. Each team presents five players, one jammer with a star on their helmet and four blockers, one of which is a pivot. The purpose of the game is to gain points via passing the opposition team.

Alex Bothwell, known as Apocalex is the Riot Squad captain and coaches Vice Squad. The 31-year-old is a deputy supply chain manager who joined CRD in February 2011.

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Alex Bothwell is captain of Riot Squad and coach of Vice Squad

She said: “When I first turned up to training, I used to wear a long sleeved top and really baggy MC Hammer pants.

“I was quite self-conscious and through doing this, I have become a lot more confident because it is about getting a sport’s physique and getting physically fit as opposed to being thin.”

Croydon Roller Derby girls do not treat their skating just as physical exercise. There is so much to this sport that empowers these woman and distracts them from their everyday life.

Viki Brunsdon, known as Viki Speedia, one of the league directors and an A team member, said: “I really enjoy being part of a team and everyone working together, especially the camaraderie and girl power.

“Personally, you get an adrenaline rush playing and you just want to keep on playing.”

Riot Squad are quickly creeping up the European rankings and 23-year-old Charlotte Ulett, Polly Filla, will play for the West Indies team in the Blood and Thunder World Cup this December.

She said: “Roller derby is awesome. It takes over my life, but in the best possible way.

“I just want to skate forever.”

The Riot Squad are ranked 26 out of 373 in the European league, according to Flat Track Stats. They have won three out of five games this year, with two more fixtures left to play before 2015. One of which is against Antwerp’s One Love Roller Dolls, on Saturday, November 1.

The undefeated Vice Squad have won all of their four games this year, plus the Eastbourne Extreme Tournament and are ranked 99 in Europe.

The Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the organising body and CRD aim to get into the Apprentice League for 2015, and then to be part of the full WFTDA league in 2016.

Apocalex said: “I couldn’t quite believe you could have this much fun playing a sport and I think I have been really lucky with the squad itself.

“The CRD girls are fun to be around and fun to work with. When it’s tough, which sometimes it is, we just support each other, laugh through it and become stronger because of it.”

The roller derby has evolved from multi-day endurance races for pure entertainment to rowdy team competitions that attract world-class athletes. There are many special effects, but live derbies entertain with drama and roughhousing.

If history is any indicator of what is to come, roller derby will surely maintain a roller coaster course and when the momentum dies down, expect something new.

CRD’s next fixtures take place on Saturday, November 1, against One Love, Antwerp and Roller Derby Leicester on Saturday, December 13.

For more information, check out: croydonrollerderby.co.uk