Fighters will flock to the Illawarra for a tournament showcasing strength and determination. Photos: Clash of Steel.
Caged fighters fitted in historically accurate armour will deliver full-force blows with axes and swords in the hope of claiming victory at an Illawarra tournament showcasing a unique and increasingly popular sport.
A medieval tournament will attract fighters from around the country as the region hosts a combat competition for a high-intensity sport where participants battle it out in heavy armour with impressive weaponry.
“Clash of Steel is a test of mind, strength, endurance and sheer willpower,” Australian Medieval Combat League CEO and founder Anton Summerfield said.
“The main reaction you get from people is just a loss for words and jaw-dropping.”
The competition is set to be the biggest yet, following two consecutive soldout events and an increasing interest in the sport in recent years. Local club Knights of Albion has experienced exponential growth in popularity since it was formed with just two members five years ago.
“At the very beginning, you would have to explain for five to 10 minutes to even get people to the right mindset of what this sport is,” Knights of Albion founder and member Scott James said.
“Most people would look at you and go, ‘Are you absolutely mad?’
“We are now at 25 to 30 active members, and that’s just the local club — it’s kind of exploded.”
The clubs train and participate in different types of medieval combat and fight in armour, often weighing up to 30 kilograms.
And although the equipment is historically accurate, the ferocity of the fight is not staged or a re-enactment, but rather pure determination from the fighters themselves.
Clash of Steel will see steel weapons, a steel cage and fighters trying to steal glory.
“It’s not fake armour, it’s made of either tempered steel or titanium and it has a rating where you can almost hit someone as hard as you can with an axe and it’s not just recoverable, you’re fighting back,” Scott said.
“They can just take it on the chin and continue and fight back.
“That’s what makes this kind of fighting so spectacular.”
Anton said: “I tell people that it’s like I’m pretending to cut a tree, but you’re the tree. My axe is blunt, so I need to swing as hard as I can.
“When people actually see the impacts that fighters receive, they’re just lost for words.”
Despite the force behind the blows, safety is actually at the forefront of all fights.
“This whole sport is based around our flawless safety record,” Scott said.
“Because the armour works, because we’re all professional, we have an incredible rule set and we don’t let anyone go out there without someone extremely senior looking over their armour and even while they’re fighting, there are marshals at all times ensuring the safety of the fighters.
“It’s not about hurting people, it’s about winning the game and that’s the spirit of it.”
The intensity and thrill of the sport are proving to be huge attractions for crowds, with many audience members then seeking to join their own club.
That exposure is something Anton hopes to replicate across the state with a new league showcasing and connecting the combat community.
“When we did events for the club, we noticed that we had a big influx of new people because they’d seen it,” Anton said.
“One of our fighters watched one of our very first events, joined the club the next week, and nine months later we did our second event and he was at that event in armour and fighting.
“I’m hoping to replicate that not just for the Knights but for the sport as a whole to help bring awareness to this sport.”
Clash of Steel will see fighters go head-to-head in a steel cage across multiple rounds, with winners determined by effective strikes as well as aggression and control.
It will be hosted at the University of Wollongong’s UniHall at 6 pm on Saturday, 28 February.
“You don’t have to travel to a renaissance fair in the middle of NSW and the countryside,” Scott said.
“This is coming straight to you inside the city. You don’t have to travel very far to see something exceptionally interesting and very cool.”
Tickets are available through Moshtix.
