Meet the Pussycats - Coach Moneyball!

Does the name Moneyball 'ring a bell'? (See what I did there? No? Okay, you'll get it in a second.) Well, the current Faster Pussycats' coach (formally known as FPC skater, Ring’er Bell), decided a name change was necessary after switching roles from skater to coach this season.  Moneyball, a book written by Michael Lewis (2003), is about the Oakland Athletics baseball team and its focus on an analytical, evidence-based, Sabermetric approach to assembling a competitive sports team (it was also a movie starring the very camera-friendly Brad Pitt).  Still a bit lost on why exactly this name was the perfect choice? Read on…

Name, Number: Coach Moneyball, +/-

Sign: Taurus

Best Quality: Tenacity and dedication

Worst Quality: Don't ask me anything before 10 am.

Loves: Sports & Stats

Hates: Mornings

Lucky Charm: I don't believe in luck.

Super Power: Converting sabermetic methods into revolutionary derby stat analysis right before your eyes!

Photo by Bob Ayers

For the newer fans of the Terminal City Rollergirls and more specifically, the Faster Pussycats, it might not be widely known that Coach Moneyball hasn’t always been a coach.  Just like the rest of us kitty cats, her nine lives are full of interesting tales to tell. 

Our coach began her derby career like any other aspiring skater, becoming involved in the TCRG Fresh Meat program in September of 2008.  A former competitive figure skater, she excelled quickly and the Pussycats snatched her up in the 2009 draft.  Moneyball also played for the Terminal City All-Stars in 2009.  

After a fairly serious concussion sustained in a 2011 bout, she decided to retire from skating.  However, following her recovery she realized she “missed being involved in the sport and the community,” and after some thought, she decided that perhaps coaching would be a way to stay involved.  Now as a coach, Moneyball explains: “I get to lace up my skates every week, work through strategies and see some of my favourite people." 

Of course she misses being in the middle of the action, but the dedicated coach is the first to admit how surprised she is that coaching has truly become her derby passion: “I really expected to miss getting out on the track and playing, especially on game day.  I was initially surprised at how satisfying it was to see the team execute what we've been practicing in our bouts.  It is so much more satisfying than if I was just doing it myself."  Moneyball says the main difference between being on the track and observing from the sidelines is “the opportunity to give feedback to everyone on a regular basis.  As a skater, I was more concerned with ensuring that I knew where I needed to be on the track and how I could be the most effective with my teammates.  As a coach, it's not about me at all.  It's really about teaching and helping everyone understand where they need to be on the track and what they need to be doing."  She admits it’s a challenge at times having the experience as a skater, because she knows that “the way that I would do it might not work for them.  It's always challenging and fun to work with different learning styles."  

So what is the story behind her new derby name?  “When I decided to coach, I started thinking about changing my derby name. I still love Ring'er Bell, but thought it might be a good time for something new.  I've always been interested in stats and metrics to measure performance.  They can tell such a good story and really help identify where strengths and weaknesses lie.  At the beginning of this season, I knew that there were certain things that I wanted to analyze after each of our scrimmages and bouts so that we could measure our progress and performance.  I had seen the movie Moneyball and followed up by reading the book.  I was really inspired with how the Oakland A's challenged the way that baseball performance had been managed using stats in unconventional ways.  Here's one of my favourite quotes from the book: 

'When the numbers acquire the significance of language, they acquire the power to do all of the things which language can do: to become fiction and drama and poetry....And it is not just baseball that these numbers, through a fractured mirror, describe. It is character. It is psychology, it is history, it is power, it is grace, glory, consistency, sacrifice, courage, it is success and failure, it is frustration and bad luck, it is ambition, it is overreaching, it is discipline.' 

Before I had even decided on my name, our Co-Captain, Andi Struction (who also saw the movie), started to call me Moneyball whenever I talked about stats.  I like what it represents, so now I am Coach Moneyball!”

We asked Moneyball what her pre-game coaching rituals entail, and she got serious: “I take some quiet time to write down and review our goals for the game.  It helps me get focused on what's important for the day, especially when there are so many distractions that can happen. Also, I paint my nails -- usually, it's some shade of purple."

Before we say goodbye, we want to know what the Moneyball will take away from this season, following the Championship bout between the Faster Pussycats and the Bad Reputations and  September 8th.  She answers in true coach fashion:

"I am so proud and impressed with how much dedication and success our team has had this season. We are a team of dedicated and hard-working women who just want to keep getting better.  The love that this team has for each other and the game of roller derby is amazing."

Agreed!