Dark Vipers Salzburg

Biting Vipers set the tone in the hall

The Dark Vipers have a surface that is only used by two other teams in Austria.(Bild: Dark Vipers Salzburg)

Where mini-golf used to be played in summer as a placeholder, the Dark Vipers from the inline hockey club are now racing around. They are currently in the second division. The appeal is great thanks to ice hockey.

Ice hockey is well known. But the non-ice alternative is much less so. We are talking about inline skate field hockey. The Dark Vipers from Bergheim have been playing regionally and nationally since 2009.

It really started in 2015, when two teams joined forces. "When I joined, we were integrated into the league," says chairman Hermann Höpflinger. The 31-year-old is still a player himself. But not because there are too few players. The popularity is very high: "Ice field hockey is naturally an issue in Salzburg. We get a lot of kids because training is too stressful and time-consuming for them. I would say that we can't complain." The sessions start at U5 and U6 level. However, there is no league for the youngsters.

Women's team new this year
In the second Bundesliga, the fighting team also gets around a lot. In order to keep their heads above water financially, the Vipers are happy to receive sponsorship. In addition, each member pays 200 euros per year. The club was particularly lucky with the hall. "There has always been one in Bergheim," says the chairman. However, the plan was to be able to ice skate in winter. In summer, it was difficult and the decision was made to build a mini golf course for bathers. "However, this was not very popular. That's how we ended up with the hall." For the floor, the Salzburg team opted for plastic tiles, which are otherwise only used by Austrian clubs in Stegersbach and Wolfurt.

Höpflinger is proud of the newly founded women's team. "We have a partnership with a team from Carinthia, and they also travel all over Austria." The women qualified for the play-offs on July 13 in Stegersbach in their first year and won gold there. The men also won the title.