Retrospective: May to December - an older woman's love affair with Reckless Intent

So I was sitting thinking now that the year is coming to an end about just how much my life has changed since my first visit to Reckless Intent back in May and I thought it might make a slightly different and hopefully interesting blog post!

We discovered Reckless Intent when two of their wrestlers appeared on an SWE show at Easter and then we met Jackie Grady at Uprising at the end of April.  We received a Facebook invite to their two night Super B.O.W.L event at the beginning of May and, as they were closer to home than most promotions and the ticket prices were extremely reasonable, we decided to check them out.

May
Friday 2nd - The first night of the Super B.O.W.L tournament and we arrived with no real expectations.  This was a relatively new promotion and I hadn't heard of most of the roster but they had a couple of names on the card we knew, Damian O'Connor, Scott Renwick and Joe Hendry so it wouldn't be all bad!!  The first thing I remember about arriving at this little industrial unit was the welcome we received.  Strangely everyone seemed to know who I was and made an effort to say hello.  We had arrived early as I wasn't sure where we were going and I never trust SatNav fully so we had front row seats for our first show.  While not a sell-out, there was a reasonable turn out for the show and by the interval, I had to admit that I was impressed with what I saw and by the end of the show I was really looking forward to the second night.  With the exception of one match, they had pulled off a show that had me hooked and buying into all their characters.

Saturday 3rd - We arrived for Night two to find that most people had read the blog about the previous night's show (those were the days when I started the blogs the minute I got home from the events!) and they seemed to have liked what I had to say.  There was a bigger crowd at the Saturday show too.  I was once again impressed by the quality of the matches and was delighted to see Scott Renwick win the tournament against all the odds.  At the end of the night I spoke to some of the guys and told them we would be back but as their next couple of dates clashed with SWE, it probably wouldn't be for a while!!

Saturday 31st - Taking Over - We weren't supposed to be here!! But Reckless Intent had announced a card that grabbed my interest - with some of the new faces I had seen at a recent Source showcase also appearing.  With no matches on the SWE card announced and Reckless Intent's Saint-George trying to wind me up on Facebook, I decided to make some signs and head to Livingston.  Rob had started training with Reckless so we arrived early so he could help with the set up and I sat in the car reading or stitching and generally keeping well out of the way!  When showtime arrived, I was front row, giving those heels hell and cheering for the good guys and already starting to wonder if I was going to make the SWE show in June....guess it would depend on the card announcements...

June
Saturday 14th found me at a Gala Day!  I honestly can't remember the last time I went to a Gala Day but Reckless were putting on a wee show so we were there - not just for the show but we started by meeting at the unit before 9am before heading to Blackburn and setting up the ring.  With Rob as a trainee, he was ring crew for the day and rather than stand around and watch, I got stuck in too - and I think I surprised a few of the lads with what I was capable of.  After everything was set up, we had a short break before the boys did their stuff in the ring - not just a couple of exhibition matches either but a full on show!  They did great and after it was all over it was time to tear it all down, pack it in the van and return to the unit.  This was the first time I really felt like part of the team and not just an observer at a show.

Saturday 28th - Proving Grounds - With the SWE card not having been announced and Rob becoming more involved with Reckless, we were back in Livingston and another early arrival so Rob could help with the set-up saw me sitting in the car making signs to antagonise the heels and support the faces!  I was also helping out a little with food and drinks outside when a freak wind lifted the marquee and knocked the urn of water over and my foot just happened to get in the way!!  I ended up spending this show barefoot and wearing a pair of Rob's shorts (the first sign I had lost some weight) and doped up on painkillers!

With no shows in July, Rob had continued to attend the training sessions and we were both looking forward to....

August
Saturday 9th - Cruel Summer - This seemed to be a turning point for Reckless Intent - They had booked Colt Cabana and Chris Renfrew for this show and the unit was bursting at the seams. Thankfully the weather held out and they were able to pull up the shutter and create an extended standing area.  The show was great, brought in some new faces and had one of my favourite moments - Chris Renfrew force feeding jaffa cakes to Saint-George!  It also saw Saint-George cashing in his Wooden Spoon and becoming the new Reckless Intent World Champion.

Sunday 24th saw Reckless Intent put on their first Sunday Slam - an afternoon show aimed at younger fans and giving some of the trainees the opportunity to get into the ring in front of an audience.  It also saw me on the ring apron offering to take up Saint-George's open challenge to his title but he was so scared, he used the "I don't hit girls" card.....it's a long time since I was a girl!

September
Saturday 7th - Party in the Park - another outdoor show!  While we didn't arrive early enough to help with the ring set up, we were there to help with anything else required.  I also was allowed inside the barriers in order to take photos and I loved being able to get up close and getting those shots without the ropes or barriers in the way!

Saturday 20th - Unleashed - Once again a show I wasn't supposed to be at!  I'd bought tickets for a Pride show in August which had been rescheduled and clashed with this one.  Rob had attended the Andy Wild seminar before the show and we drove to Glasgow for the Pride show...picked up our friend who had travelled from Dundee to meet up for that show...then drove back to Livingston instead!  Really glad we did as the match between Jackie Grady and Andy Wild was bloody incredible.

October
Saturday 4th - Reckless Intentions - In a word WOW!!!  This was the annual "hardcore" show and it did not disappoint.  The entire show was brilliant and had Scott Renwick and Saint-George in a "Falls Count Anywhere" first half main event, with the second half ending with a TLC match for the Wooden Spoon featuring Chris Renfrew , Darren Lewis, Rawlins and Martyn Stallyon.  The whole night was brutal and brilliant and I loved it!

Sunday 19th - Sunday Slam 2 - This was the show that saw Rob make his in-ring debut during the main event rumble match.  It also saw the "wedding" of Jam O'Malley and Saint-George which had been hyped on Facebook and was a definite highlight of the year!

November
Saturday 1st - Over The Top - Reckless Intent's first main show in an outside venue.  In the 6 months since my first visit, I had seen Reckless go from strength to strength.  New people coming to training, fans who had come for the first time in the summer were continuing to make the journey for shows and new links with SWE were bringing new faces to the roster and their fans were making the trip from Dundee.  The unit was no longer big enough to hold the crowd so we took over Murieston Scout Hall for the day/night...and yes I said we because I was part of the team.  After dropping off Rob and Janet with the food and doing a quick airport run, I returned to help set up the food and merchandise tables, before doing ticket and merchandise sales.  During the show I was able to wander around the ring getting some cracking shots while manning merchandise during the interval and at the end of the show.  I was not missed as the crowd loudmouth as the Russell Brothers had brought support from Bo'ness Rugby Club who more than made up for my lack of chanting!  Scott Renwick beat Saint-George to take the Reckless Intent World Title in a cracker of a match.  Rob got his first spot on a main show during the Rumble main event which I got some video footage of.  Then it was all hands on deck to pack up the ring into the van before heading back to the unit to help unload again.  It was this show that made me truly feel like part of the family - although I still steer clear of the pre-match talk...I don't know anything about the matches until they take place which is why I can still blog them as a fan!

Sunday 16th - Sunday Slam 3 - This show started the trainee tournament for the Sunday Slam title and saw Rob take part in his first singles match against JJ Russell.  I was so proud seeing him in the ring, even though he was heel and told me to shut up as I was yelling support for him.  He did a lovely head scissor armbreaker move which had the friends and family who had come along cheering...and a few others in the crowd too.  Although he didn't win, it was great to watch my boy make those first steps in fulfilling his dream.  The main event between Rawlins and Glen Dunbar caused controversy when the referee made the three count on Rawlins despite him kicking out at 2.  Both wrestlers appeared confused and the crowd were not happy.  Looking forward to a rematch!

December
Saturday 6th - Lights Out - The second show at Murieston and having done it once before, Janet and I let the boys get on with the ring set-up while we got stuck into the setup of our food and merchandise tables.  Ticket pre-sales had been fantastic and it was another sell-out at the Scout Hall.  The Bo'ness boys were back in force making plenty of noise.  The matches were cracking, Rob got to be a lumberjack, Chaz Phoenix made an appearance and distracted Saint-George long enough for Bobby Roberts to get the win before ripping his England flag and draping the pieces on his face while the crowd went nuts and referee Conor Frost screwed Rawlins over in another match (storyline developing!) and Scott Renwick had a cracking match against Eric Canyon to defend his title.  Once again, after the show was over it was time to pack everything up and head back to the unit to unload!

Sunday 14th - Christmas Sunday Slam - The final event of the year.  Rob took his first victory in a match with Jackie Grady, rolling up his opponent while he was distracted by "West Grady".  The final of the Sunday Slam tournament ended as a no-contest when Falcon interfered, setting up a triple threat match between Falcon, AJ Russell and Venym for the belt at the first Sunday Slam show of 2015 on January 25th.

And so there you have it - from May to December I discovered a little wrestling promotion and fell in love with it.  I count the roster members and their families as friends and you really don't want to be in earshot of me and the boss's mum when we are at other events, eh Janet?

Review: BCW No Blood No Sympathy Night 1 - East Kilbride

Friday 5 December 2014

So December sees the BCW annual two night extravaganza No Blood, No Sympathy return to East Kilbride and Kilmarnock.  Having missed their show in September, I was really looking forward to this one and it appeared I was not the only one.  Arriving at the venue just before 6 as we usually do in order to get our ringside aisle seats, I was surprised to see how many people were already waiting in line.  Tickets had already sold out and there would be limited standing tickets available on the door.  Luckily we were able to get ringside seats close enough to the entrance aisle for me to still get some great photos!

The first match of the night saw Paul London take on Kid Fite for the BCW Heavyweight Championship.  Kid Fite had made his feelings clear about being in an opening match and not the main event for the Homecoming show back in August and here he was in the opening match once again!  Paul London made his super long entrance and did the rounds of the crowd (which we all love) and was about to enter the ring when Kid Fite appeared and made a sneak attack.  This was a cracker of a match and could most definitely been a main event match.  There were no holds barred as both guys went all out to take the title belt.   London drop-kicked Fite from the apron and the match continued outside the ring for a time with London having the advantage.  Back in the ring the momentum swung back and forth with both having near pins but it was Kid Fite who took the victory, retaining the belt which he would have to defend the following night against Drew Galloway.

Next up was Wolfgang v Joe Coffey.  Now I love both these guys, whether heel or face they both put on one hell of a show and tonight was no different but, for me, something was missing.  I cannot quite put my finger on what though.  It may be that they had to follow such an incredible opening match or possibly because it appeared neither man was in heel role and it all seemed a bit too civilised with them shaking hands before and after the match.  I think I am just used to seeing both these guys do their best to destroy their opponents.  As I said the match itself was good, there was a chant of "that was awesome" from some of the fans, but the buzz that makes me want to get in their faces just didn't happen and I couldn't get into it they way I normally would.  There were near pins for both guys but Wolfgang took the win on this occasion.

The next match saw my personal favourite, Jack Jester face fan favourite, Grado.  Jester managed to make a small child cry on his way to the ring and Grado seemed to be the Pied Piper of East Kilbride as every child in the room seemed to flock around him during his entrance.  Surprisingly, I really enjoyed this match.  While I think Grado is really entertaining, I had started to find his routine becoming a little boring but he has picked up his game - gone was the checking the ref and having a cheeky pinch of his bum and there were no somersaults around the ring.  I mentioned in a previous blog that Grado appeared to be looking leaner and improving on his wrestling ability and it was really evident in this match.  There was some cracking stuff from both guys but there was still some humour - the funniest moment obviously unplanned when Jester threw Grado onto a guy in the crowd only for the chair he was sitting on to collapse..."he's hardcore" yelled Jester.  Despite the crowd being firmly behind Grado and hitting Jester with the "wee boot" and "roll and slice", it was Jester who took the win, rolling up Grado for the pinfall.

The first half main event saw Johnny Moss up against former WWE superstar Hardcore Holly.  I really enjoyed this match, although Rob seemed less impressed.  The majority of the crowd were behind Holly but there was a small contingent of Moss supporters who would not be silenced.  Moss dominated much of the match and hit a couple of cracking suplexes on Holly but the sound of Holly's chops to the chest of Moss actually echoed in the hall.  Holly was able to fight back, hitting Mossy with the Alabama Slammer to take the victory to the joy of the crowd.

Just before the interval, BCW owner Graham McKay came into the ring to thank the fans for coming out and making the show a sell-out, when Big Damian O'Connor appeared, furious that UK talent such has himself had been overlooked in favour of big names from the US and demanding that he be given a match.  With Damo hovering over him in the corner, McKay got on the phone to ask for assistance in the ring...and it arrived in the form of Drew Galloway, setting up the main event for later that evening.

During the interval Hardcore Holly, Chavo Guerrero and Paul London came out to the merchandise tables, selling their merchandise but also willing to sign items brought by fans and have pictures taken at no additional cost.  Having already met Chavo at a TNA show, I had my wee book signed by Hardcore Holly and Paul London and got a couple of pics too.  (I met Paul London in Dundee but as I was with the RI crew at the time, I didn't get autographs or photos)  I also picked up a copy of the Homecoming DVD which was available for the first time that night.

The first match of the second half was Liam Thomson v Chavo Guerrero.  As usual, I managed to wind Thomson up during his entrance and followed it up with a "chicken" chant when he left the ring to escape the onslaught from Guerrero, although I admit to being outdone by the group of guys who chanted "Carmel's better" - that seemed to really wind him up.  Chavo also had a "pied piper" moment when he left the ring and every child in the room flocked to him.  This was another great match with some nice moves from both guys.  It was great to see "The Three Amigos" carried out up close and Thomson hit a cracking dropkick to the back of Guerrero while he was on the ropes.  It was Guerrero the fans wanted to win and they got their wish when he hit Thomson with a frog splash from the top rope and scored the pinfall, leaving Thomson needing assistance from the ring and backstage.

The penultimate match of the night saw Kenny Williams and Davey Blaze team up to face Just Uz, accompanied by Kay Lee Ray, for the Tag Team Titles.  This was an absolute belter and was a real close contender for match of the night.  I have said in the past that some of the combinations put together as teams to face Just Uz did not have the chemistry needed to make a really good match.  I hadn't seen Williams and Blaze as a team before but they did an incredible job, they worked really well together and the whole match just flowed.  There was plenty of strength and agility shown by both teams and it really was a joy to watch.  Just Uz retained their titles on this occasion but if Williams and Blaze continue to work as a team to this standard, they may just be wearing those belts themselves in the near future.

Finally it was time for the main event, Damian O'Connor v Drew Galloway.  This was by far Match of the Night.  It was strange to see Damo have to look up to the face of an opponent and these two giants went at it hammer and tong.  They started in the ring, however they ended up battling all over the hall.  At one point Damo slammed Galloway into the fire exit door with such force the glass smashed.  They continued to battle around the hall and I actually feared for the Christmas Tree at one point.  Back in the ring they continued to fight and after several failed pin attempts, Damo got frustrated with referee Sri Hari and knocked him down and out of the ring.  Galloway seized the opportunity to make a pin attempt but there was no referee to make the count.  A second referee came out but he was accidentally knocked out by Galloway.  This time Damo had the pinfall attempt but once again there was no referee to count.  Damo dragged Hari from the floor back into the ring before attempting to finish Galloway but when his attempt failed, he again attacked the referee.  The match ended with Galloway having both referees in the ring before hitting Damo with the Futureshock and both referees made the 3 count.

With Damo beaten and lying on the floor at ringside, Kid Fite appeared.  Galloway called him into the ring to go for it immediately but Chavo Guerrero then came to the ring and said that Galloway should enjoy his victory tonight and Kid Fite would wait until the following night when he would be putting the title on the line against him during No Blood No Sympathy night 2 in Kilmarnock.

I unfortunately was unable to attend the Kilmarnock show as Rob was involved in Reckless Intent's show on the same night, so I am eagerly awaiting the DVD release of the event so I can see what I missed.

BCW have been putting on some of the most incredible shows and after selling out the Kilmarnock Grand Hall with their Homecoming show, went one better and sold out both Ballerup Hall in East Kilbride and Kilmarnock Grand Hall with the No Blood No Sympathy shows.  My advice is that if you want to see one of their shows, DO NOT wait to buy tickets on the door - you may well be disappointed.  Check them out on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date on future events and ticket sales.

Review: SWE Uprising

Saturday 29 November 2014

Another trip to Dundee for SWE Uprising, but this one was a little different.  This was the first show I attended without my son.  Rob travelled with the Reckless Intent boys and helped backstage and I travelled with friends for show instead.

SWE have introduced a new system where booking tickets in advance gains you early entry to the venue and a pre-show bonus match before the doors open to the general public who wish to pay on the door.  The bonus match for this show featured warring brothers AJ Russell v JJ Russell.  This was a good wee match, with JJ Russell taking the win on this occasion, although having seen these two face each other several times recently, I would have liked to have seen each of them matched up against members of the SWE roster and hope this happens on future shows.  Footage of the match is on the Loudmouth Facebook page and you can watch it by clicking here.

The main show began with a video montage of the intense rivalry building between Ian Ambrose and Martyn Stallyon in their recent matches and of Chaz Phoenix taking 50% ownership of the SWE, climaxing with the brutal attack on Stallyon by Ambrose the night before the show - video footage is available on the SWE Facebook page.

First match of the night saw Jay The Jackal take on Trident member Steven "Air" Myles.  This was a strange match as neither man is a fan favourite which made it difficult for the crowd to get behind either man.  The Jackal antagonised the crowd into booing him which had a small number of people chanting for Myles but overall it was fairly subdued.  I hate to say it this but I found it really difficult to get into this heel-on-heel match (usually I can pick one guy over the other to cheer for) but this one just didn't work for me, although I did manage to get a "potato" chant going for a bit.  The Jackal works the whole heel angle really well but for some reason against a face opponent it just works better.  The Jackal took the win by submission in this match and got the usual boos from the crowd.

Immediately following his defeat, Myles returned to the ring with fellow Trident member Darren Blair and SWE co-owner Bravehart, who announced to the crowd that one of his Trident members, MDK, has been put on the shelf due to a serious injury and, as you can't have a Trident with only two members, tonight he would be introducing a new member.  Before that however he wanted to make an announcement regarding the actions of Ian Ambrose against Martyn Stallyon.  He then publicly applauded Ambrose on his actions and gave him the night off.  He then returned to the announcement of the new member of the Trident..."England's Own....Saint-George"!!! The Evil Scotsman has joined forces with The Prodigal Son of England.  I was totally gobsmacked and I may have let out a curse or two (I'm very sorry!). I knew that Saint-George would be making an appearance at some point during the night as I had spent two days working on the robe he wore (and it did look bloody good) but I was convinced that his appearance would be connected to the recent spats on Facebook with Chaz Phoenix!  After introducing Saint-George to the other Trident members, a very smug Bravehart left the ring with his "new and improved" security force.

Next up was a Sirens match featuring two ladies making their SWE debuts, Layla Rose and Kasey Owens.  This was also the first time I had seen either girl in action and both made a good first impression. Their match was relatively short however Owens showed her speed and agility and Rose used brute strength and really worked her heel character well, antagonising the crowd by yelling at them in German.  Both girls had near pins but it was Layla Rose who was victorious on the night.  I would like to see them both in action again in the future.

For the final match of the first half, Reckless Intent General Manager Jason McKinlay came out to introduce Venym and Jackie Grady.  This was a bit different from their previous matches - it was the first time I had ever seen Grady play face!  Even funnier was when his entrance music was suddenly changed from his usual "Word Up" to Hanson's "Mmm-bop".  Grady got a fantastic reception from the SWE crowd from the start, which was rather strange to witness.  Venym took the upper hand early on in the match and scored a near pin.  He played the heel card to a t, using the ropes to his advantage but Grady rallied to score a near fall of his own.  The match ended when Grady managed to hit his "No Place Like Home" cravat neckbreaker on Venym and take the three count.

The second half started with an appearance from Chaz Phoenix, who updated the audience on the condition of Martyn Stallyon and confirmed he would be out of action for the foreseeable future.  He then called out both Ian Ambrose and Bravehart and proceeded to tell Bravehart that as co-owners of the SWE, there are things they cannot do without each other's approval and that includes giving Ambrose the night off.  There are, however, some things Chaz can do without requiring the approval of Bravehart, such as making the main event a triple threat match for the SWE title with Ambrose having to defend against LJT and Mikey.

The penultimate match of the night saw Scotty Riccio put the Future Division title on the line against "The Baddest Man in Professional Wrestling" Rawlins.  The majority of the crowd were firmly behind Riccio in this match, although there was a small band of support for Rawlins.  This was a pretty good match up with a bit of everything. The match started off with a series of wristlocks and cartwheel counters before Riccio took the upper hand and Rawlins left the ring.  Riccio went for a move from the ropes but Rawlins intercepted and ended up slamming Riccio flat on the ring apron before doing a suicide dive onto Riccio, however his second attempt was not as successful.  Back in the ring, the match continued to go back and forth.  Riccio hit not one but two 619s during the match, Rawlins hit his flying headbutt from the top turnbuckle  and caught Riccio in a crossface submission hold which Riccio escaped by grabbing the ropes and also unsuccessfully attempted an armbar submission.  Riccio managed hit Rawlins with his springboard moonsault after the second 619 and scored the pin to retain the title.

Finally it was time for the main event.  The match started with Ambrose getting into the faces of both his opponents and ending up in the receiving end of kicks to the face from both, sending him out of the ring.  Mikey and LJT then battled, while Ambrose watched from outside, ready to act if either of the other men looked like making a pin, before attempting to dropkick both guys from the top turnbuckle and missing, ending up outside the ring again.  This time he grabbed Mikey's foot, slamming him face first into the canvas before dragging him outside and attacking him.  There was a rather untidy exchange between Ambrose and LJT in the ring, before Ambrose launched himself from the ring apron onto Mikey.  This was followed by first LJT launching himself over the ropes onto both men outside the ring and then Mikey recovered to the ring before doing the same.  Mikey and Ambrose then took to the ring where Ambrose dominated much of the action, keeping LJT out of the ring as much as possible.  Ambrose took to the turnbuckles looking to finish Mikey when LJT appeared, moving Mikey out of the way and taking the blow himself.  Ambrose again made an escape, leaving Mikey and LJT to battle in the ring.
An attempted a springboard from the top rope from Mikey was intercepted by Ambrose, leaving Mikey outside the ring and Ambrose and LJT to finish out the match.  After a couple of near pins by LJT, he caught Ambrose in a submission hold, however Ambrose manoeuvred the hold into a pinfall.  It has been stated that Ambrose tapped out, however from the angle I was seated, it was a clear pinfall - if Ambrose did tap, neither myself nor the referee were in a position to see it.  LJT thought he had won the match until the announcement was made and, not happy with the decision, he attacked Ambrose - this story is far from over.

The night ended with Scotty Riccio making a wee presentation and leading the crowd in singing happy birthday to a young lad from the audience.

I am not going to award a match of the night for this event, as for me the stand-out moment was not a match, but the reveal of Saint-George as a Trident member - completely unexpected and certainly made my jaw drop.

The final SWE event of the year, "Seasons Beatings VII" will be held in the Ardler Complex on Saturday 13th December and tickets are available now.  Details are available on their Facebook page

Review: Reckless Intent presents Sunday Slam 3

Sunday 16 November 2014

Just two weeks after their sell-out show at Murieston Scout Hall, Reckless Intent returned to the unit for their third Sunday afternoon show.  This one started a trainee tournament to crown the first ever Sunday Slam Champion.  The rules for the tournament are that no current or former title holder from the main roster could hold the title, however to make it "interesting" one wild card entry would see Jackie Grady take a spot in the tournament.  There would be four quarter final matches and two semi-finals, with the final match to be held at the next Sunday Slam event on 14 December.  Even more important, Rob would be taking part in the tournament in his first ever one on one match.

As always we arrived early but this time it was more for Rob to prepare for his match than help with the set-up and, also as always, I kept out of the way while the final show preparations were made.  We also had some friends and family along to support Rob.

The show started with General Manager Jason McKinlay explaining how the Sunday Slam tournament would work and revealing the championship belt, when he was interrupted by the arrival of Jackie Grady.  Grady stated that, as the only Triple Crown winner, he would obviously be successful in winning this title too.  It was then time to meet his opponent in the first quarter final match, Wild Wild Westy.  In keeping with his imitation gimmick, this time we met West Grady as Westy appeared wearing a blonde wig and Grady's tights and boots!  Westy and Grady faced each other in the ring and what followed was a hilarious mime where Westy mirrored the actions of Grady, ending with both of them lying side by side on the mat.  Grady asked the crowd, "Is he lying down?" and quickly moved to pin Westy who kicked out the first time but Grady went back for the pin and scored the 3 count.  Match won by Grady without a single wrestling move apart from the pinfall!

The second quarter final saw Venym face Iron Fist, who was accompanied to the ring by Miss J.  While Venym tried to use his superior agility to his advantage, the brute strength of Iron Fist dominated much of this match.  Miss J grabbed the leg of Venym while he stood on the ring apron to kill his early momentum and Iron Fist delivered some crushing moves, including a leg drop on the apron, driving the shoulder to the lower back of Venym while he hung upside down in the corner and a sidewalk slam.  Despite this Venym managed to rally and took the win but while Venym was celebrating on the rope, Iron Fist grabbed a steel chair and slammed it off his back, before throwing the chair to the ground and power bombing Venym onto it to the disgust of the crowd.

The third quarter final saw my boy make his singles match debut.  Fighting under the name Rob Mills, he faced JJ Russell.  Russell started off by "correcting" the referee, saying it was Rob Wells, before holding out a hand to Rob, who blasted it away and the match was on.  It was a short match but I loved it (and I don't care if anyone calls me biased either!)  Rob managed a lovely head scissor armbreaker move which got a great reaction from the crowd and, in total heel character, told me to shut up when I shouted "that's my boy".  Unfortunately it was Russell who took the win, hitting Rob with his "Sister Abigail" before making the pin.

The last of the quarter finals was AJ Russell v Craig Valant.  AJ seems to have gone a little nuts recently and came out with a can of silly string which he sprayed over the crowd.  Valant came out to a great reception from the crowd.  This was good match with both guys having a chance to shine.  Russell dominated the early part, but Valant fought his way back, dropping several elbows on Russell.  Russell however showed he could win a match without his high flying moves by rolling up Valant for the three count.  While Russell sat on the floor at ringside, cackling over his victory, GM Jason McKinlay came out to the ring to conduct the draw for the semi-final rounds - Jackie Grady would face Venym and the Russell Brothers would come face to face once again.

The second half of the show began with two former champions facing off, Mikey v Saint George.  With both men losing their titles at Over The Top, neither was in the mood to lose another match.  Saint-George was also upset that Mikey had used the RKO on Joe Hendry after the rumble.  He came out to the ring, grabbing a steel chair on the way.  While the crowd chanted Blah Blah Blah, he referred to losing the title to Scott Renwick and bragged about having made Renwick require knee surgery after their match.  He then had the chair set up at ringside and invited Jason McKinlay to take a seat and watch him win his match against Mikey.  Mikey came out to the ring and proceeded to kick Saint-George's ass around the ring - literally - causing Saint-George to escape the ring.  Once back in the ring the momentum swung back and forth.  Saint-George delivered a cracking suplex before taunting Mikey's mum in the audience, then called for a time-out when Mikey took the upper hand.  The action took a slightly worrying turn when Mikey asked the referee to pull on his leg after his knee popped, however Saint-George decided to capitalise on Mikey's recurring problem and focused on the knee.  Mikey would not give up and hit Saint-George a series of kicks and blocks using the ropes for momentum.  Saint-George managed to block a 619 attempt by grabbing Mikey's legs but a second attempt hit the target and was followed by a springboard splash off the top rope.  At this point Mikey looked to be in control but Saint-George was no pushover and fought his way back, leaving them both lying in the ring and needing a 7 count to recover.  After faking a leg injury, he attempted the RKO several times but was blocked and countered by Mikey each time.  After rolling Mikey up and grabbing the tights but only managing a two count, Saint-George finally hit him with the RKO and took the win.  He then took great delight in forcing Jason McKinlay to raise his hand in victory.

The first semi-final of the Sunday Slam tournament pitted Jackie Grady against Venym.  These two have faced off several times before, usually with Grady the victor.  Grady came to the ring first, followed by Westy, who Grady made stand at ringside where he continued to mimic every move Grady made.  Venym came out, still hurting from the after match attack by Iron Fist and was visibly less agile than usual.  Grady quickly tried to capitalise on this, however Venym still appeared to have enough left in the tank to deal with Grady, making Grady leave the ring and attempt to have Westy take his place.  After a failed legdrop attempt from Venym, Jackie attempted his finisher but ended up being swung round the ring.  It was Venym who took the win this time and secured a place in the Sunday Slam final on 14 December.

The second semi-final saw AJ Russell take on his brother JJ Russell.  To be honest, based on their previous encounter, I was hoping the semi-final draw would have gone differently and these two would face each other in the final.  Once again they put on a hell of a match.  With the majority of the crowd firmly behind JJ, these boys beat each other senseless.  With JJ having the upper hand, the referee was knocked out and was unable to make the count when JJ clearly had AJ down for the win.  As JJ tried to revive the referee, AJ attacked with a low blow and, as the referee started to come round, hit his brother with a big splash from the top turnbuckle, then pinned him for the win.  AJ Russell will face Venym on 14 December for the Sunday Slam title.  Venym came out and held out his hand to AJ, who instead attacked Venym, hitting him with the "Shell Shock" leaving him senseless on the mat.

Finally it was main event time.  This match was billed as the match between two of the most under-rated wrestlers in Scotland, Rawlins and Glen Dunbar.    After The Grue read out a note praising Dunbar, I felt it necessary to get in his face and was told to sit on my ass!  This match also brought about a very rare occurrence, something I have only done once before - I started chants for Rawlins! Yes, for one night only, "The Baddest Man in Professional Wrestling" was the fan favourite.  This match started off brilliantly and the crowd were loving it.....right up until the point that the referee made a complete balls-up - but I will get to that later.  Rawlins attempt at a suicide dive was countered by Dunbar who then punished Rawlins on the ring apron before both men got back into the ring.  The match continued to swing back and forth with both guys scoring near pins.  Rawlins sent Dunbar out of the ring to land at my feet but back in the ring, things swung back and forth again.  Once again Dunbar ended up outside of the ring and this time Rawlins suicide dive paid off.  I, of course vacated my seat as for some reason I always seem to get caught up in these things!!  Back in the ring Rawlins caught Dunbar in a cross face submission hold.  As the crowd chanted for Dunbar to tap, he broke the hold and managed to pull off a slingshot vertical suplex on Rawlins before going for the pinfall.  The referee counted, one, two, Rawlins kicked out and the referee brought his hand to the mat for the three count.  There was stunned silence in the unit and everyone wondered what the hell was going on.  Both Rawlins and Dunbar were confused as the referee insisted that it was a three count and declared Dunbar the winner.  There were a lot of angry, upset and confused people at the end of this match.

I have not picked a Match of the Day for this show, as what was shaping up to be that match was turned into a farce by the referee's actions.  I am sure an explanation will be forthcoming but no matter what, it ended the show on a bum note and I hope that there will be a rematch booked soon.

The card for the next show, Lights Out on 6 December is already shaping up to be a corker, with Mikey facing Joe Hendry in what could be his final match.  If he can't beat Hendry, he will retire.  Saint George and Ian Ambrose will team up to face Bobby Roberts and DCT and new Reckless Intent World Champion Scott Renwick will be going against doctors advice to defend the title against a "face from the past" who has beaten him for a title before.  To find out more information on this and future events and how to get tickets, like them on Facebook and subscribe to their YouTube Channel to see videos of these amazing matches as they appear.

Review: Reckless Intent presents Over The Top

Saturday 1 November 2014

This was a big day for Reckless Intent.  They were taking their shows out of the unit and into an outside venue for the first time.  In the six months since my first visit to Reckless Intent for their Super BOWL two day event, I had noticed that the crowd was increasing at each event, with standing room only at the last two so it was inevitable that they would need to look at larger venues so for the final two shows of the year they booked Murieston Scout Hall.  Still there were a few nervous people wondering if enough people would come to make the larger venue worthwhile - and the answer was a resounding yes!

The show started with Reckless Intent World Champion Saint-George coming out to the ring, only to be faced with a crowd of boys from Bo'ness Rugby Club who treated him to a chorus of Flower of Scotland and lots of heckling as he filled the ring with balloons in celebration of the arrival of SWE Champion Ian Ambrose.  Ambrose came out carrying beers, which the two men used to toast the end of the career of Martyn Stallyon and each others "awesomeness", before Ambrose announced that he was going to end the career of Bobby Roberts.  Roberts then came out to huge cheers from the crowd.  After a verbal altercation with Saint-George, he turned his attention to Ambrose.  Roberts dominated the beginning of the match using his size and strength advantage, however Ambrose came back at him with some big kicks, using his agility to keep the bigger man off balance and with Saint-George hovering at ringside, interfering at every opportunity, Roberts had his work cut out for him.  Ambrose went for one move from the ropes too many however, and Roberts hit a cracking stunner on him and went for the pin, however Saint-George had the referee distracted and by the time the referee started the count, Ambrose had recovered enough to kick out at 2.  An enraged Roberts lost focus and Ambrose took the advantage again, however Roberts avoided the double footstomp attempt and instead hit him with a spear, before going for the pin.  This time Saint-George jumped into the ring and attacked Roberts, who was awarded the match by disqualification.

Saint-George then grabbed two chairs and they prepared to attack Roberts with them when the music of Scott Renwick played and the man himself appeared to make the save.  Ambrose and Saint-George dropped the chairs and ran from the ring.  General Manager Jason McKinlay appeared and asked Saint-George if the stipulations on his own match were the reason for him interfering in this match and reminded him that any cheating against Renwick would cost him the title and his position in the company.

Next up was "The Superstar" Darren Lewis v Craig Valant.  Lewis came out first, with the briefcase he won at Reckless Intentions, then demanded that The Grue carry it to the ring for him while the crowd chanted "slightly average".  Valant came out to cheers which made Lewis more annoyed and their initial grapple ended with a big slap to Valant's face by Lewis.  Valant went for a quick roll-up, giving Lewis fair warning that there would be no messing around and Valant would take whatever opportunity he could.  Lewis countered any offensive by going for the ropes or leaving the ring, returning to break the 10 count before sliding out again and receiving chants of "chicken".  He used underhanded techniques, such as taking a mouthful of water and spraying it in the face of Valant in order to put him off balance to take the advantage.  Valant tried to rally but Lewis once again used the ropes to his advantage, choking Valant, then ramming his shoulder into the midsection of Valant in the corner.  Valant refused to go down easy and the match went back and forth with each man trying and failing to score the 3 count, despite using some big power moves.  Finally Lewis was able to hit a cradle shock on Valant and take a very unpopular win.

The first half main event saw current Reckless Intent UK Champion Mikey put the belt on the line against Joe Hendry, who had vacated the Hardcore Title in exchange for this match.  Hendry took to the microphone to tell everyone how wonderful he was and that he would be the most dominant wrestler in Reckless Intent before inviting Mikey to join him in the ring.  With the Bo'ness Rugby Club boys giving Hendry some abuse, he announced if they did not shut up, he would leave.  This only made the crowd louder and Hendry did leave the ring and make toward the curtain as the referee began to count him out and only made it back into the ring by the skin of his teeth.  What followed was lovely to watch - a perfect blend of Hendry's technical style with Mikey throwing up some cracking aerial stuff including a lovely springboard dropkick.  Hendry hit Mikey with a clothesline that spun him a full 360 degrees but was only able to get a 2 count.  With the crowd firmly backing Mikey, Hendry tried several power and submission moves but Mikey kept coming back at him, finally hitting a series of big kicks, before missing a move from the ropes that once again gave Hendry the advantage.  The deciding factor in this match turn out to be neither man's particular skill set but the appearance of the SOS.  With Mikey finally appearing to be in control of the match, the SOS came out, distracting him and allowing Hendry to take advantage and score the win to become the UK champion.  But this was not the end....as the SOS members beat both Hendry and Mikey in the ring, the music of Darren Lewis started and it appeared that he was there to help Hendry and Mikey, until he smacked Hendry with the briefcase then handed it to the referee, cashing in his shot and pinning Hendry.  Darren Lewis becomes the new Reckless Intent UK Champion then takes to the microphone to say he had done "what's best for business!"  With Hendry blaming Mikey for the turn of events, this story was far from over....

The second half of the show started with the rematch we had all been waiting for - Saint-George would put the RI World title on the line against Scott Renwick, with a stipulation that if he were to win by count-out or disqualification he would be stripped of the title and fired.  Saint-George decided not to wait for the bell and attacked Renwick with the belt as soon as they had been announced.  Renwick rolled out the the ring and Saint-George followed, continuing his attack at ringside, including smacking Renwick off the ring apron several times and blasting him into the ringpost, before shoving him back into the ring.  He then grabbed a chair and attacked Renwick with it.  After focusing on the left knee, he got Scott's foot in chair and was about to jump on it from ropes when the referee called for some help.  More officials and Jason McKinlay appeared as Saint-George made the jump.  McKinlay reminded him of the no cheating clause, to which he replied the bell has not gone yet!  With Saint-George continuing to attack Renwick, he had to be physically restrained by the referee as the other officials removed the chair and helped Renwick back to his feet.  Finally the bell rang and the match officially started.  Saint-George continued where he had left off and again focused on the left knee of Renwick before Renwick hit him with a spear and went on the offensive.  The match was brutal and continued to swing back and forth, with near falls from both men, an RKO mid-match from Saint-George on Renwick, a sleeper hold which almost put Renwick out twice, before Renwick hung Saint-George upside down on the turnbuckle and dropkicked him, then later hit Saint-George with a massive dropkick from the top rope.   With both men exhausted, Renwick attempted the Angel Wings however Saint-George escaped and hit Renwick with a second RKO but could only get a 2 count.  Finally Renwick hooked up the Angel Wings and this time scored the 3 count to become the Reckless Intent World Champion.

As Renwick celebrated on the top rope, two members of the SOS appeared.  Saint-George held up his hands and quickly left the ring. Could Saint-George be linked to this mysterious group?  As SOS leader Sam Crowe looked on, his associate delivered a massive power bomb to the new champion, leaving him prone in the centre of the ring.  As they stood at ringside, several roster members came out to the ring to assist Renwick and the SOS disappeared.

Next up was a 6 man elimination match which would allocate an entry number in the rumble to the participants.  The first five entrants, AJ Russell, JJ Russell, Venym, Jackie Grady and SWE favourite LJT were in the ring when SWE owner Bravehart appears to introduce his Trident member Darren Blair.  As always in matches of this nature, chaos ensued.  Venym and Grady battled outside the ring at the entrance area, the Russell Brothers fought directly in front of their supporters from Bo'ness Rugby Club while LJT and Blair battled inside the ring and gradually the matches switched about.  With JJ Russell and Blair fighting at ringside, LJT looked to suicide dive them but was caught by a clothesline from Grady, who then did a flying dropkick through the ropes to take down the two outside.  LJT then did a corkscrew crossbody over the top rope to knock all three down with Venym doing a similar move to all four.  Finally AJ Russell played bowling ball to their skittles, hitting a "whisper in the wind" wiping out all 5 opponents before shoving Venym back in the ring.  Venym manages to swing AJ around the ring but only scored a 2 count on his pin attempt.  AJ then splashes Venym from the top rope and Grady makes the pin to eliminate Venym who will now enter the rumble first.  Darren Blair was eliminated next by LJT, who was then eliminated by AJ.  Grady and AJ appeared to face off, before working together to target JJ but JJ was able to rally, eliminating his brother before taking on Grady.  As he was about to finish Grady, AJ jumped up on the apron and distracted him.  JJ sent him flying with a dropkick before returning his attention to Grady and finally scoring the pinfall, JJ Russell took the number 30 slot in the rumble.

The final match before the rumble was "The Baddest Man in Professional Wrestling" Rawlins v Falcon.  Rawlins came to the ring first and announced that he believed Falcon to be part of SOS which is why he challenged him to a match, before Falcon appeared to cheers from the crowd. In true "baddest man" character, Rawlins tried to terrorise some of the kids in the crowd before getting down to business in the ring.  This match went back and forth, with both men pretty evenly matched in size and speed.  There were a lot of wristlocks and reversals to start with before Falcon went on the offensive.  Rawlins rolled out of the ring to escape and when Falcon leapt the ropes to follow him, Rawlins swept the legs from under him, causing him to crash to the wooden floor.  He then climbed back into the ring to break the count before doing a suicide dive through the ropes onto a still recovering Falcon, however his second attempt at the same move was met by Falcon's boot to the face.  Falcon then had some of the crowd move aside and rammed Rawlins face first into the vacated chairs.  When Rawlins avoided an attempted chop, Falcon slammed his own hand into the ringpost, giving Rawlins the opportunity to regain the advantage.  Once back in the ring, Rawlins continued to focus on the injured arm of Falcon.  While Falcon tried to get back into the match, Rawlins appeared to have an answer for everything and it looked as though the match would soon be over as Rawlins held Falcon in a crossface submission hold.  Suddenly all three members of  SOS appeared and attacked both men.  The match ended in a no contest as several roster members come out to make the save and chase SOS out the main door.  As the other roster members returned backstage, Rawlins held out his hand to Falcon, however, in true heel turn fashion, he refused to shake hands and instead hit Rawlins with a turnbuckle bulldog he calls "The Acid Drop" and left the ring.  Mikey returned to the ring to assist a dazed Rawlins backstage.

Finally it was time for the 30 Man Rumble match, where the last man standing would earn a shot at the World Title at the Super BOWL in May 2015.  The match started with Venym and Saint George, with a new participant joining every 30 seconds, so it got chaotic very quickly and was difficult to follow everything that was going on - so I will just highlight a few points.  Saint-George and Bobby Roberts went at each other for a bit before Bravehart decided to have a pop at Roberts.  Westy made two appearances, first as Bushwacker West, who was eliminated immediately, then later reappeared as West Cena who also was eliminated very quickly.  Rob Mills was attacked as he entered by Bravehart who had been eliminated.  Ambrose and Saint-George returned after being eliminated and took out Bobby Roberts, further fuelling their feud.  Saint-George gets a second bite at the cherry after being drawn at random to be given a lucky chance second entry.  JJ Russell enters last after winning the earlier 6 man elimination match and he and AJ Russell take each other out, leaving the final four as Jackie Grady, Rawlins, Mikey and Joe Hendry.

Jackie and Rawlins are soon eliminated, leaving Mikey and Hendry facing each other once again and, once again it was Hendry who was victorious and now has a shot at the Reckless Intent World Championship at the Super BOWL tournament in May.  An unhappy Mikey grabbed a microphone to say that Hendry had beaten him twice that night and also six months previously.  This fact does not sit well with Mikey, even if Hendry is one of the best wrestlers in the country and Mikey then challenges Hendry to a match at Lights Out on 6th December to prove he can beat him and if he can't, he will quit wrestling.  Hendry accepted the challenge and the match is set but as they shake hands on it, Mikey hits Hendry with an RKO to the shock and disbelief of the crowd.


What a show! With 6 matches and a 30 man rumble, there was plenty of action.  Reckless Intent's first show at an outside venue was a sell-out and everyone involved put everything they had out there for the people to enjoy.  Normally I would give a Match of the Night award but I think this time I am just going to give them Show of the Year and look forward to seeing just how they can top this at their next show on 6 December, also at Murieston Scout Hall,  Tickets are already available and can be purchased online or at their Sunday Slam show on 16 November, where there will be the first two rounds of competition for the new Sunday Slam Championship belt.  Details of these, and all of the events planned for 2015 can be found on Facebook and video footage of their matches can be seen on their YouTube Channel

Review: PBW Capital Clash

Sunday 26 October 2014

Finally, Premier British Wrestling comes to Edinburgh!  I was so pleased that one of the companies I have been travelling to see were coming to my home town.  As their shows are usually around the Glasgow area, there were complaints from some people about having to travel and others were not happy that the venue had a 14+ policy which meant a lot of the families with younger children could not attend.

As we had bought VIP tickets, we had an early entry and Meet and Greet with Chris Masters and The Addiction (formerly known as Bad Influence).  Chris Masters spent a little time chatting with Rob about training before we moved on to Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian.  As Rob had his photos taken with them both at the TNA fan interaction in January, it was my turn to get a photo!  Unfortunately it was then that my camera decided to play up and we ended up holding up the queue slightly.  Luckily I got it working again and Rob managed to get the snap!

The first match of the night was between "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson and PBW Champion El Ligero.  Thomson came out complaining that his match was announced as a non-title match and he found it insulting and challenged El Ligero to put the title on the line.  It was at this time we realised the difference an older crowd made as Thomson asked Ligero if he was a pussy! Challenge accepted and we now had a title match.  Ligero took the fight to Thomson, with some of his cracking aerial moves before the action spilled outside the ring.  Thomson was dumped into a seat at ringside before being knocked straight back out of it.  Once back in the ring, Thomson came back, gaining momentum and scoring a two count.  The match then went back and forth until Thomson got the PBW belt and made to nail El Ligero.  Fortunately the referee was on the ball and refused to allow this to happen.  Ligero then hit Thomson with a splash from the top rope before pinning him to retain his title.  Thomson lay stunned in the ring as the Mexican celebrated, before demanding that the referee explain what had happened.  A great match to start the show.

The next match was scheduled to be Davey Blaze & Carmel v Grado & Kay Lee Ray in a mixed tag team match, however earlier in the day there had been an announcement that both Grado and James Scott (who was scheduled to appear later) would be unable to appear and replacements had been confirmed.  Davey Blaze came out to the ring with Charles Boddington, followed by Carmel, who took the microphone and started to insult the crowd before they proceeded to make digs at Grado's non-appearance.  Carmel stated that if he couldn't be bothered to show up that she was done and they should just go.  As they looked to leave the ring, music rang out and Kay Lee Ray and Tommy Marx appeared.  The girls started things off before Blaze and Marx were tagged in and at this point the double teaming began.  Marx was isolated in the oppositions corner and while Carmel antagonised KLR causing the ref to stop her from getting into the ring, Marx was beaten by both team members, with Boddington getting in on the action too.  Marx was finally able to tag in KLR who nailed Blaze and Carmel with a double dropkick from the top rope before taking control over Carmel. Boddington got on the apron and ended up knocked to the floor while in the ring, KLR pinned Carmel as Marx pinned Blaze to take the win for the fan favourites.

The first half main event saw Jack Jester face Chris Masters.  Masters played up to the crowd after his entrance as Jester sat unimpressed at ringside before getting into the ring and telling Masters to get on with it.  As the bell rang to signal the start of the match, we could clearly hear the guy on the stage doing the commentary for the DVD so Masters decided to do his own commentary, much to the amusement of the audience!  When the action finally got going, they seemed evenly matched until Masters hit Jester with a suplex before going for the pin.  Jester got out of the ring and grabbed a chair before heading back toward the ring.  Masters decided to do the same, at which point Jester dropped his chair and demanded the referee get the chair off Masters. The action then spilled out of the ring again and through the crowd, onto the bar and back to ringside where Jester shoved Masters onto a chair which had been vacated by a fan going to the bar, however the chair collapsed under Masters weight.  Back in the ring, Jester took the advantage but Masters was able to rally, getting Jester into his "Masterlock".  With the referee standing directly in front of the two men asking Jester if he was okay, Jester hit Masters with a backheel lowblow, breaking the hold and making the pin.  As a victorious Jester left the ring, Masters complained loudly to the referee that "he hit my balls" before making several attempts to give the referee a backhand to the nether regions.

The first match after the interval was Kenny Williams v Lou King Sharp.  This was a great match with two young guys who can really move around the ring at some pace.  Williams is becoming one of my favourites and Sharp is definitely one to watch.  Still only a teenager, he really seems to have perfected his character and works it really well and there was a wee chant of "you've got school in the morning" from a group at the other side of the ring.  Sharp started off doing push ups in the ring so Williams grabbed his feet and let him faceplant the mat.  There followed lots of fast and furious action with plenty of "flying" from both guys with Williams the victor on this occasion and Sharp being carried backstage by the referee.

The penultimate match of the night featured TJ Rage as a replacement for James Scott against the masked wrestler, El Technico.  El Technico seemed to have a small fan club in the balcony who made lots of noise which I thought was great as for much of the show there had not been as much noise from the crowd as usual.  Within seconds of the bell ringing, El Technico had knocked Rage out of the ring and then suicide dived him, almost landing on me and with them both being big guys, I admit that I panicked a little.  Back in the ring Rage tried to use his strength and El Technico his agility to try to keep the advantage over the other but it was Rage who took the win after hitting El Technico with an incredible spear before pinning him for the 3 count.

Finally it was time for the main event, The Addiction (also known as Bad Influence) v Just Uz for the PBW Tag Team titles. Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian came out first and took pleasure in winding up the crowd as they introduced each other.  BT Gunn and Stevie Xavier came out to their usual pop.  This was my match of the night with some great action from both teams and some hysterical comebacks from Christopher Daniels, who totally owned me when I gave him some abuse - after repeating "clean break" about twenty times I asked if he had got stuck on repeat.  His response was if he wanted crap from me, he'd scrape my tongue - and that was just one of many!!  Just Uz did their quick tags and slaps to the face of Kazarian before The Addiction managed to isolate BT Gunn and double-team him, having the referee distracted by trying to keep Xavier from making the save.  It was Just Uz who eventually took the win to retain the titles before BT Gunn took to the microphone to thank Daniels and Kazarian for coming to Scotland and giving them such a good match.  Daniels responded by saying they were thrilled to be a part of the independent scene in Scotland and to be as good as they were, they had to wrestle guys as good as Just Uz.  They also stated that Just Uz got the win this time but they would do it again for sure....and I want to see that rematch!

This event was great and the last minute changes to the card did not detract from the show at all.  It was filmed for a DVD release and I am looking forward to getting my copy and watching this event again.  I also hope that PBW will return to Edinburgh again in 2015.

For information on their future events, check out PBW on Facebook

Review: SWE Uprising

Saturday 25 October 2014

The first SWE show after Hell For Lycra was held back in the spiritual home of SWE, The Ardler Complex.  With Brian Kendrick, Paul London and Leah Von Dutch announced, we were promised a cracking show and some major changes.

The first change was that people who had purchased tickets in advance were allowed into the venue earlier that those paying on the door.  Once inside and seated, we noticed that more and more chairs were being brought out for those who decided to turn up on the night and this show looked to be a full house!

You know there is a stacked card when the first match of the night is the rematch of the Hell For Lycra main event, Martyn Stallyon v Ian Ambrose.  With Stallyon in the ring, everyone's attention was on the curtain for Ambrose to make his entrance but, in typical #scumbag fashion, he came through the crowd to sneak in from behind.  Instead, Stallyon took the fight to Ambrose through the crowd and right around the hall!  Once back in the ring, Stallyon was all over Ambrose and looked to have this match well and truly won, when he suddenly collapsed.  The ring filled with officials and Ambrose stood by looking shocked at this turn of events.  With help, Stallyon got to his feet in the corner of the ring when Ambrose suddenly cleared the ring of officials and attacked Stallyon, using a chair and hitting him with a coast to coast.  He then grabbed his "I AM GOD" coat from under the ring before pinning Stallyon and demanding the referee make the three count several times then gloated as Stallyon was carried from the ring on a stretcher.

Next up was Nikki Storm v Leah Von Dutch.  This was a cracking wee match with both girls showing what they are capable of.  Storm was magnificent as the heel (as always) and Von Dutch really impressed me with her wrestling ability - definitely not just a pretty face.  There were some lovely spots with both girls having near falls - Storm adamant hers were 3 counts as usual and doing a wee disappearing act under the ring and Von Dutch hit Storm with a lovely spear before getting a two count.  It was Storm who would be victorious this time, rolling up Von Dutch and putting her feet up on the ropes for leverage to get the 3 count.  I would definitely like to see these two go at it again in the future.

The first half main event saw Joe Hendry v Paul London.  With Hendry in the ring, London made his entrance, going into the crowd and seeming to greet virtually everyone in audience personally.  When he finally made it to the ring and started to strip off his "spacesuit", Janet and I reverted into giggling schoolgirls, yelling at him to get his kit off for the girls!!!  This match was amazing.  Hendry, in my opinion, is one of the fastest rising stars on the circuit and this was my first time seeing London and...wow, just wow.  Neither guy held anything back in this match, with some fantastic mat wrestling as well as some aerial moves, it was a joy to watch.  There were some hits that were so hard, the ring actually moved.  Hendry got London in his signature suplex but was not able to hold it as long as usual, and some clotheslines from both guys that threatened to take the other's head off.  Hendry caught a crossbody attempt by London, throwing him across the ring before going for the pin but only made a two count.  London came back at him and had a pin attempt but Hendry got his foot on the rope.  Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and this ended with a roll up from Hendry on London, pulling on the tights for extra leverage to score the win.

The first match after the interval was a 10 Man Elimination Tag Match for the Future Division title.  Christopher Saynt would defend against SWE regulars Felix Fortune, Scotty Riccio, Jay The Jackal and Steven "Air" Myles, some guys from Reckless Intent, Venym, Jackie Grady, Rawlins, Mikey and Dutch wrestler Kid Lux.  With two men in the ring at a time it was a bit easier to follow the action and there were some interesting combinations in the ring at times.  I was slightly confused about Kid Lux's decision to throw an opponent out of the ring and do a suicide dive so close to the barriers when there was a large matted area with no barriers on the opposite side of the ring.  About halfway through the match Saynt was eliminated when he submitted to a Scorpion Deathlock applied by Steven "Air" Myles and we knew there would be a new champion.  Rawlins eliminated Mikey before being eliminated himself by Scotty Riccio and they continued to battle as they returned backstage.  It finally came down to Jay the Jackal and Scotty Riccio.  Jay tried using his strength advantage, however the speed and agility of Riccio proved to be too much and it was Riccio who score the pin, rolling the Jackal up and becoming new Future Division Champion.

The penultimate match pitted two of The Trident, MDK & Darren Blair against the two giants, Damian O'Connor & Claymore.  Damo started off well however the match swung in favour of the Trident after the tag when Claymore was double-teamed.  After taking a fair bit of punishment, Claymore managed to tag the big Irishman, who tore through the both Trident members, standing on Blair and scoring a near pin.  With all four men in the ring, Claymore and Damo had the upper hand, performing giant splashes on their opponents in opposite corners, following up with cannonballs when the match was interrupted....

... when the third Trident member Steven "Air" Myles appeared with Bravehart and proceed to attack them.  Now 4 on 2, the match was awarded to Damo and Claymore by disqualification.  Suddenly the lights went out and a video played on the big screen before Chaz Phoenix appeared.  With Bravehart and the Trident still in the ring, Phoenix announced that there were many people who were unhappy with the way they have been treated and several of the SWE roster then appeared to surround the ring, before entering and clearing it of Bravehart and his cronies.  With Phoenix now in the ring, he announced that Bravehart's reign over the SWE was over, that all the small percentages that have been sold over time were now in the possession of Phoenix - he is now 50% owner of SWE and there are going to be big changes....watch this space....

The final match of the night was LJT v Brian Kendrick.  LJT is sporting a new, more aggressive attitude these days and I think I prefer this.  There was a definite split in the crowd with a lot of support for both guys.  This was a fast paced match with both men literally throwing themselves at the other.  There was hardly time to draw breath or pick my chin up from the floor before the next move came.  The momentum swung back and forth with several near falls and could have easily gone either way.  With both men exhausted, it was LJT who finally took the win in this match with a back slide on Kendrick to score the pinfall.

With so many cracking matches on the card, I thought Match of the Night would be harder to pick but for me it just had to go to Joe Hendry and Paul London, with LJT/Kendrick close contenders.

The next Uprising event is on Saturday 29th November at the Ardler Complex.  Check out SWE's Facebook page for further information on all future events and to buy tickets.