Review: SWE European Tournament - 2 Nights

The SWE European Tournament is a bi-annual tournament and we saw Rob Cage win the final of the first one back at Hell For Lycra X, which was our first SWE show.  For this tournament we decided to take in both shows, staying in Dundee overnight.

Because this was a two night event (and partly because I am so far behind with my blogs) I am going to write this event as a single blog and not focus too much on each match individually (yeah I know it's a cop out but I need to get up to date!!)  It will also be without photographs as the strange lighting which kept changing in Menzieshill made it difficult to get great photos, although there will be a selection uploaded to the Loudmouth Facebook page soon.


FRIDAY 15 MAY - NIGHT ONE

It was a small crowd at Menzieshill Community Centre for the first night of the tournament and no matter how I tried, it was difficult to get them to join in with the chants/cheers/jeers but that didn't stop me being the Loudmouth the entire night.

Tournament - Massimo Italiano (Italy) v El Kid Lux (Netherlands)
A nice match to open the tournament.  Italiano is becoming a bit of a fan favourite with the SWE crowd and Lux played the heel to perfection.  Italiano took the victory to progress to the semi-final on Saturday.

Tournament - Saint-George (England) v Sambroso Maestro (Spain?? erm think he's Mexican mate)
This match never actually happened.  Bravehart and Jam O'Malley came out to the ring with Saint-George.  Doctor Grue announced Sambroso Maestro but he failed to appear.  Bravehart then announced that he and Jam had made sure that Saint-George would get a bye into the semi-finals.  He then demanded that Sambroso be given a 10 count and if he didn't appear, he would forfeit the match.   As Saint-George was awarded the bye, Chaz Phoenix appeared and told Saint-George that he wasn't getting off that easily and that he would have a one on one match there and then against Mikey.

Saint-George v Mikey
What a match!!  Mikey came out all guns blazing and Saint-George had to resort to underhanded tactics to get the upper hand.  Mikey soon came back at him, nailing Saint-George with several cracking moves but unfortunately Saint-George was declared the winner when he manoeuvred the referee into the path of Mikey, causing him to nail the referee instead and Mikey was disqualified as a result.

JD Wilde v Kenny Kyd
This was the match I had hoped to see - the decider between the two trainees who had been on the last two uprising pre-shows.  I was not disappointed.  Another cracking match between these two lads and definitely deserving of a main card slot.  Kenny Kyd took the victory and now I look forward to seeing them both facing other opponents in the future.

Tournament - Theo Doros (Cyprus) v Damian O'Connor (Ireland)
Newcomer Doros came out to the ring singing what I believe was the National Anthem of Cyprus.  He gave it a good try but he was facing Big Damo!!  Doros discovered how it feels to have "The Beast of Belfast" stand on his chest and drop a senton.  Damo took a convincing victory to move into Saturday's semi-finals.

MDK v Conor Frost & Darren Blair
The second half started with a 2 on 1 handicap match.  MDK was accompanied to the ring by Chaz Phoenix.  This didn't appear to be much of a handicap match as MDK made short work of both of Bravehart's minions, dispatching Blair and slamming Conor Frost before pinning him for the three count.  Phoenix then got the microphone and declared war on Bravehart, delivering a devastating piledriver on Blair and stating he would destroy his minions until he got his hands on the co-owner.

Tournament - Euan G Mackie (Castle Mackula) v Scott Renwick (Scotland)
The final tournament qualifier of the night was in my opinion the best of them too.  Mackie and Renwick delivered a top notch match which either man deserved to win and was my Match of the Night.  There was something for everyone in this match - technical and high flying moves, a bit of brutality and some humour.  Bravehart was ecstatic when Renwick took the victory to move into the semi-finals, however while Renwick is associated with Bravehart's minions, there are cracks forming..

Jay the Jackal & Jackie Grady v The ComixZone
A rather strange tag team match where The Jackal and his "Associate" came out to the ring but both appeared rather confused when Grady appeared and announced that he would be The Jackal's tag partner for the match.  Rawlins and Venym appeared in The Flash and Spiderman gear as part of their ComixZone gimmick (which I still don't get).  Grady ended up on the floor outside the ring and "The Associate" took over as tag partner for "The Jackal".  The Jackal scored the pinfall on Venym before leaving the ring with "The Associate".  The ComixZone then took out their frustrations on Grady before making their way backstage.

LJT v Ian Ambrose
The final match of the night and one I felt a strange atmosphere in.  The match itself had everything required to blow the roof off the place - two cracking competitors, both with a firm fanbase but it was somewhat subdued.  Ambrose was not his usual cocky self, posing for photos as usual.  The match was good - Ambrose appeared to be leaving with his belts (his homemade belt and Joe Hendry's SWE belt that he had stolen after the last uprising) but LJT went after him and they took in the entire hall, bouncing each other off walls and using dustbins as weapons.. but still something was missing.  LJT received a cut to the forehead during the match but it did not appear to slow him down.  Ambrose attempted to use the belt as a weapon but the ref intervened and ended up down himself.  Ambrose then took the opportunity to nail LJT with the belt after all and eventually scored the pinfall.


SATURDAY 16 MAY - NIGHT TWO

Night Two saw a much larger and very much more vocal crowd...which was just as well as my voice was not at its best after working so hard the night before!

Tournament - Massimo Italiano (Italy) v Saint-George (England)
Massimo Italiano endeared himself to the crowd by appearing to wipe his butt with Saint-George's top but unfortunately he was unable to give them what they truly wanted.  A belter of a match ended with Saint-George victorious after managing to hit Italiano with his second attempt at the Saint George Cross.  Saint-George has booked his place in the final at Hell For Lycra in the Caird Hall on 29 August.

Bravehart Invitational Battle Royal
Bravehart came out to announce that the winner of the Battle Royal would automatically get a spot on Hell For Lycra at the Caird Hall.  The competitors were Jam O'Malley, The ComixZone (Rawlins and Venym) JD Wilde, Jackie Grady, Scotty Riccio, Theo Doros, Conor Frost and The Jackal's "Associate".  O'Malley and Frost appeared to work together throughout and Bravehart made his presence at ringside felt, however their plan was thwarted and Scotty Riccio was the last man standing.

Joe Hendry v Mikey
These two guys always put on one hell of a show and this was no exception.  Hendry was without his SWE Heavyweight Title belt, which Ambrose had stolen.  From the outset the crowd were chanting for Mikey, who has become a big fan favourite with the SWE crowd.  Unfortunately, despite pulling out all the stops, it was Hendry who would be the victor this time.  A close contender for my Match of the Night, it was only just beaten by the next match.....

Tournament - Damian O'Connor (Ireland) v Scott Renwick (Scotland)
There is nothing like watching two guys who have worked together as a tag team going at it against each other.  These guys know each other so well, it was going to take something special for one to get over on the other.  I have seen Big Damo stand on the chest of several wrestlers over the years, but this was the first time I saw him stand on a wrestlers back and then follow it with standing on his chest and the senton!  Surely it was over and Damo was the winner.....but no....Renwick not only withstood this but he was the one to score the three count and would now face Saint-George at the Caird Hall in August.  In a show of good sportsmanship, Damo and Renwick shook hands after the match.  Saint-George came out and got into Renwick's face and Bravehart and his minions came out to try to smooth the waters between their "comrades".  Bravehart encouraged them to shake hands and as it appeared they would, Bravehart and the minions left the ring, just as Renwick pulled Saint-George in and hit him with the Angels Wings.  The crowd went mad as Saint-George landed on his face.  Scotty appears to have seen the light and will have the crowd firmly behind him in August as Scotland faces England at the Caird Hall.  Definitely my Match of the Night!!

Bobby Roberts v El Kid Lux
A nice match to kick off the second half of the show.  Despite the crowd being on the side of Roberts, the Dutchman put on a better performance on the night and took a well deserved win.

Chaz Phoenix & MDK v Darren Blair and Steven "Air" Myles
The three original Trident members in a match but with one aligned with Phoenix against the other two showed how things change.  There was a lovely spot with Myles walking the top rope before doing a backflip onto the others outside the ring.  I was a bit worried he was going to overshoot with the height he gained on it but boy it looked impressive!  MDK and Phoenix took the victory then Phoenix challenged Bravehart to a match at Hell For Lycra - a 5 on 5 tag team elimination match with Bravehart personally taking part with 4 of his cronies with whoever wins getting 100% control of SWE.  Bravehart avoided accepting the challenge by saying he would give his answer at Uprising on 27 June at the Ardler Complex.

Jay the Jackal & Ian Ambrose v LJT & Euan G Mackie
The final match of the two day tournament saw The Jackal and Ambrose team up against LJT and Mackie, who have worked really well together in the last couple of shows.  The Jackal and Ambrose did not work so well and at one point Ambrose made to leave, saying he didn't need this.  "The Associate" who was ringside tried to stop him only for LJT to dive through the ropes.  Ambrose got the upper hand just as The Jackal joined them, furious at Ambrose for leaving him in the lurch.  Euan Mackie took the opportunity to leap from the top turnbuckle and knock them down like skittles.  The win went to LJT and Mackie after LJT pinned Ambrose for the three count, however it appeared he had taken a bit of a bump to the head and required some assistance getting up and out of the ring afterward.

All in all, this was a good wee tournament, although I wish the Friday crowd would have been a bit more vocal!

SWE have upcoming shows in Blairgowrie on Saturday 13 June and Dundee on Saturday 27 June.  For information on these and future events, including how to buy tickets, check out SWE on Facebook

Review: SWE Uprising: The Jackal, The Snitch and The Lobbie Press

Saturday 25 April 2015


Last Saturday of the month can only mean one thing.....SWE Uprising!

The pre-show match was a rematch from last month with Kenny Kyd once again facing JD Wilde.  This was another nice match from the trainees and they seemed to have improved on their previous encounter.  This time is was JD Wilde who took the victory and with the count now standing at one apiece, I look forward to seeing a decider in the near future!

The main show began with a Triple Threat match.  "The Superstar" Darren Lewis made his SWE debut and with him and Massimo Italiano already in the ring, Chaz Phoenix came out to announce the return of Mikey.  Mikey got straight down to business, showing he was fully recovered from his knee surgery but was knocked from the post by the big Italian.  Lewis and Italiano went at it before Mikey returned to take down both of his opponents, finally scoring the pinfall on Lewis, much to the delight of the crowd.

Ian Ambrose then came out to the ring carrying his cardboard replica belt and proclaiming himself Champ.  SWE Heavyweight Champion Joe Hendry then came out for a face to face confrontation which ended in a lot of posturing with each trying to make their belt the most visible!  Add LJT to the mix, who announced he was sick of the politics and wanted a title match that night.  Finally Chaz Phoenix appeared and announced that there would be no championship match that night, but that Ambrose and Hendry would have to put there differences aside as they would be be teaming together in the main event, a tag team match against LJT and a partner of his choice.

The next match saw Venym face Felix Fortune.  Venym came out with his Comix Zone tag partner Rawlins dressed as two of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to the original TMNT movie theme, much to the amusement of the crowd.  Fortune was booed from the minute he appeared through the curtains.  Fortune appeared to have Venym well under control, including hitting five elbow drops in a row but Venym managed to fight back and take the pinfall.

Next out to the ring was Jackie Grady who would face Rawlins (who once again came out to the ring with Venym to TMNT).  I have to admit that I am not too keen on the Comix Zone comedy persona of Rawlins and really miss "The Baddest Man in Professional Wrestling" heel that he used to be!  This was a decent enough match but I couldn't really get into it (I blame the gimmick).  Rawlins took the victory by pinfall.

The first match of the second half was one that had been brewing for a while.  After months of antagonising on Facebook, Saint-George would finally face Chaz Phoenix.  Phoenix made an immediate impact on the bigmouthed Englishman, taking the action outside the ring, where unfortunately Saint-George managed to reverse the momentum.  As Phoenix was starting to gain some momentum, Saint-George was joined by Conor Frost but even this was not enough and Phoenix nailed Saint-George with a cracking piledriver to take the win.  An irate Bravehart then made an appearance, attacking Phoenix from behind before taking the microphone, berating Phoenix, then Chris Duke and calling out Reckless Intent's General Manager Jason McKinlay and threatening to take control of Reckless Intent at their event on 6 June.

Next up, Jay the Jackal put the Future Division title on the line against former champ Scotty Riccio, who had been promised a rematch by Chaz Phoenix.  With "The Associate" at ringside to assist, The Jackal was determined not to give up the title, however the referee put paid to any plans by sending "The Associate" backstage.  Riccio appeared to have the Jackal well under control but while having a discussion with the referee, The Jackal struck from behind with a lowblow.  The referee called for the bell and it was announced that Riccio was the winner by DQ but as the title can only change hands by pinfall or submission, The Jackal retained the title.  "The Associate" then reappeared and both he and The Jackal beat on Riccio.  JD Wilde, Kenny Kyd and Theo Doros came out to try to save Riccio but each failed.  Finally The Jackal and "The Associate" left the ring, with Riccio draped over the big man's shoulders.

The final match of the night  - Joe Hendry and Ian Ambrose wait in the ring to see who LJT has chosen as his partner.  LJT made his entrance and turned to show he was wearing the mask of EG Mackie, who appeared from behind the curtain wearing LJT's mask.  While Hendry and Ambrose continued to posture with their belts, LJT and Mackie took the opportunity to double team them, dropping Hendry to the mat and then dumping Ambrose on top of his partner.  Mackie then threw Ambrose from the ring, leaving LJT and Hendry to continue.  This was a cracking match with some lovely moves from everyone involved.  The highlights for me were Mackie reversing his fortunes when Ambrose and Hendry had him in a suplex - they held him too long and Mackie flipped himself down onto his feet, dropping the two big men and then later in the match when he launched from the turnbuckle to knock the guys standing outside of the ring down like skittles.  LJT and Mackie work really well together and they proved it once again by taking the win and another Match of the Night.

SWE have Uprising shows in the Ardler Complex on the last Saturday of each month and are now working toward their big annual show Hell For Lycra, which is being held on 29 August in Caird Hall.  To keep up to date with future events and ticket information, check out SWE on Facebook

Review: Discovery Wrestling Superkick Party

Friday 10 April 2015


Well I admit that I had been slightly disappointed with some aspects of the last Discovery show, but they more than made up for it with this one....and once again the full show is available to watch FREE by clicking here!!

The first match of the night saw Martyn Stallyon, who was accompanied to the ring by Lady Debbie Sharpe, face Deviation.  This was the first actual match for Deviation at Discovery and boy was he impressive.  No matter what Stallyon threw at him, he just kept on going, bouncing back from dropkicks and slams to the floor outside the ring as if nothing happened.  Stallyon obviously realised there was no chance for him and tried to make his escape, only to have Danny Boy Rodgers appear and force him back into the ring and take what was coming to him...the mandible claw.

Next up was Sammii Jayne v Nikki Storm in one of the best women's matches I have seen....the only negative was the referee, who once again tried to insert himself into the action and actually had to be told to get out the way by Storm (and she wasn't the only wrestler to say that!)  Storm was her usual magnificent self, proving that size is irrelevant when you have the talent and the drive.  Sammii Jayne proved she had some moves too but she also had the unfair advantage of having her "bae" Debbie Sharpe at ringside and Sharpe made her presence felt, grabbing the leg of Storm when on the turnbuckles and allowing Sammii Jayne to land a cracking superkick and take the pinfall.

The first half main event was the Superkick Party advertised!  4 teams, The Wild Lions, The Gatecrashers, The Global Kings and The Young Bucks in an elimination match.  Now I had said in previous blogs that I am not a big fan of these types of matches but this one was pure gold.  With Christopher Saynt injured, he announced Aspen Faith as his replacement for the Gatecrashers.  The Global Kings, Joe Hendry and Lou King Sharp had me in stitches during their entrance as each strived to steal the limelight - Hendry playing up to the camera and Sharp jumping on his back to get in the frame was hysterical!  The match started in chaos with battles inside and outside of the ring but quickly settled after Lou King Sharp was launched from the ring onto the other competitors by the Young Bucks.  After the Gatecrashers and Wild Lions were eliminated the rivalry between Hendry and Sharp to be the main man of the team became more apparent and gave more amusing moments.  Ultimately The Young Bucks took the victory in a match that you really should watch for yourself!

The second half started with Ian Ambrose coming out to the ring and issuing an open challenge to anyone in the locker room to face him.  The challenge was answered by Lionheart, who had recently made his return to the ring after a devastating injury a year ago.  There was no sign of ring rust as Lionheart took the fight to Ambrose, spring over the ropes to continue the match outside the ring.  Ambrose managed to gain momentum and pulled out some cracking moves but Lionheart would not be beaten and hit a beautiful frogsplash to take the victory.

The penultimate match was Rampage Brown v Joe Coffey and once again, the only negative in the match was the referee!  Coffey made one young fan's night when he spotted her at ringside wearing an Iron Man mask and he gave her his own mask.  The match was amazing - both guys trying everything to win only to have the other counter.  There were several near pins by both guys where their opponent only just managed to kick out and this match could easily have gone either way but it ended with Coffey winning by disqualification after Brown hit him with a lowblow.  As Coffey recovered in the ring, Brown starting looking under the ring (probably for a steel chair) but settled for the steel bell before grabbing Coffey in order to pile drive him onto it.  Luckily for Coffey, Big Damian O'Connor appeared and Brown dropped Coffey and ran from the ring.  Damo called Brown a coward and asked for a rematch on 22 May and Brown agreed.

Finally it was time for the main event and a match I have been looking forward to seeing since last October when these two men started off a four man elimination match.  Tonight the final of the Y Division Tournament would take place and see either Lewis Girvan or Chris Sabin crowned the first ever Y Division Champion.  There really are no words to describe just how incredible this match was and all I can say is please click on the link at the top of the blog and watch for yourself.  Both guys did an incredible job and while Sabin won the title, Girvan won the respect of everyone watching.  I look forward to seeing these two go at it again in the future.

The next Discovery wrestling show is on May 22nd at Napier University Sports Centre and is sure to be another cracker, with Tommaso Ciampa and Juventud Guerrera scheduled to appear.  Keep up to date with this and future events by liking the Discovery Wrestling Facebook page

Review: Reckless Intent presents Never Back Down

Saturday 4 April 2015

April saw the return of Reckless Intent to Murieston Scout Hall and another sell out show.

As announced at the previous Sunday Slam show, there was a pre-show match with Venym defending the Sunday Slam title in a 10 man rumble style elimination match.  The match started with Venym, Disturbed and Chavi with a new competitor arriving at timed intervals.  Venym was eliminated early and Chavi and Disturbed seemed to have the match well in control, eliminating each entrant almost as soon as they entered the ring.  As Hardcore Champion Craig "The Firestorm" Valant made his entrance he was attacked by Jam O'Malley who took the Hardcore Championship under the 24/7 rule.  O'Malley was immediately challenged by Wee Jimmy, however it was Westy who took advantage and rolled up O'Malley to take the belt before running out of the building, chased by Wee Jimmy and Jam O'Malley.  Back in the ring the action continued and it came down to Chavi, Disturbed and Valant, who finally made it into the ring after being attacked.  Disturbed was eliminated and after both men had a near fall, Valant managed to secure a submission on Chavi to become the new Sunday Slam Champion.

The main show opened with Mikey making an announcement that he had been cleared to return to the ring on 2 May and he would face Lewis Girvan, one of Scotland's fastest rising stars at the Super Bowl tournament.  The Sons of Silence then appeared and proceeded to beat Mikey, before attempting to damage his recently repaired knee with a chair.  Joe Hendry made the save and Chris Renfrew appeared behind the retreating SOS and a small preview of the night's main event ensued.  Hendry then took the microphone to announce that he would be teaming with Chris Renfrew to face SOS later that evening and to warn Scott Renwick that he was coming after the Reckless Intent title.

The first scheduled match of the night saw LJT take on Bobby Roberts.  This was an interesting match-up, with Roberts' size advantage being countered with the speed and agility of LJT.  The fight spilled outside the ring with Roberts using his strength to catch LJT as he flew toward him, slamming him into the ring apron and ringpost, however LJT was quick to move out of the way as Roberts barrelled towards him, leaving the big man to smack into the ringpost himself.  The match continued to swing back and forth until, with Roberts in control, Saint-George's entrance music played.  Roberts immediately turned to face the entrance, only for Saint-George to sneak in from the side of the hall, crawling around the ring and enabling him to attack Roberts from behind, at which point Ian Ambrose also appeared.  The referee called for the bell and awarded the match to Bobby Roberts as a result of a disqualification.  Craig Valant then appeared to even the numbers and when an angry LJT got involved, Saint-George and Ambrose attempted to make a hasty retreat.....

....General Manager Jason McKinlay was having none of it however.  He came out to ringside and announced that Ambrose would face Craig Valant right there and then and Saint-George was banned from ringside during the match.  Ambrose, brandishing his cardboard SWE replica, then announced that as a fighting champion the match would be for the "SWE Heavyweight Championship". A great wee match with plenty going on, the crowd were firmly behind Valant and remained vocal throughout.  The end came with Valant looking to be in control of the match, however as he turned with Ambrose across his shoulders while going for "The Firestorm", Ambrose kicked the referee in the head with his boot, knocking him down.  Valant pinned Ambrose but the referee was unable to make the count.  As Valant attempted to rouse the referee, Ambrose grabbed his cardboard belt, hiding the Sunday Slam belt behind it and nailed Valant on the head, then tossing the belts aside as the referee came to, pinned Valant to take the victory (and retain his cardboard title).

The first half main event saw Saint-George face the upcoming Lou King Sharp.  I have seen Sharp a few times at different promotions and I am in awe of the confidence of this young "pocket rocket" (he is the same age as my own son!!)  He totally embraces the fact that he is shorter and slighter built than most wrestlers but he more than makes up for it with his attitude and character and had the audience in fits of laughter from the minute he entered the ring.  Sharp started off well but the Englishman soon took the advantage.  A trip outside the ring had Sharp grabbing the timekeeper's hammer for the bell and threatening to ring Saint-George's bell with it instead.  Back in the ring, an accidental lowblow to the ref was followed with Saint-George hitting Sharp with a deliberate lowblow.  Sharp returned the favour before all three hit the canvas, holding their respective bits!  While Sharp appeared to recover quickest he was soon hit with the Saint George Cross and pinned, but somehow managed to kick out at two.  Saint-George was furious and went looking under the ring for a steel chair which ended up being his undoing - Sharp knocked the chair back into the face of Saint-George before pinning him for the three count.

The second half of the show started with The Best in the West (-Lothian) Jackie Grady and Westy facing the Russell Brothers.  This was a reasonable match, however it seemed to get a little chaotic after AJ Russell slipped on the turnbuckle, injuring his knee.  Westy and Grady took the victory and both held out their hand to JJ Russell after the match.  JJ and AJ Russell fistbumped each other at ringside before heading backstage.  Then it really got chaotic.  As the victors celebrated, Jam O'Malley made his move on Westy, once again taking the Hardcore belt, donning Westy's wig and trying to shake the hand of Grady.  Conor Frost then attacked O'Malley to take the title before being hit by a springboard missile dropkick from Mikey who claimed the belt and became the second person in the "Triple Crown" club.  His reign was short-lived as Bobby Roberts hit him with a spear before taking the title.  Jam O'Malley hit Roberts with a lowblow, only to be on the receiving end of a lowblow from Westy who then pinned Roberts to retake the Hardcore title and was then, once again, chased from the building by Jam O'Malley.

The penultimate match saw newcomer Theo Doros face Venym.  This was a good match, and Doros put on a good show in his first one-on-one bout against the more experienced Venym, definitely holding his own and showing some amazing potential for the future.  There were several near pins for both guys and surprising it was Doros who took the victory, however Venym was gracious in defeat, shaking the hand of Doros before raising it in victory.

Finally it was time for the main event.  The SOS members Graeme Leask, Darren Lewis and Scott Renwick stood in the ring as Chris Renfrew and Joe Hendry made their way through the curtains.  Lewis was quick to point out that SOS had the numbers advantage but this was soon rectified by the appearance of Rawlins.  The match started off as a giant brawl, with all 6 men in the ring knocking lumps out of each other before gradually settling down.  Renfrew and Co took control early, making several tags and isolating Leask in the ring.  SOS then had a period of control, where Renwick and Lewis made several quick tags which focusing on Hendry.  Lewis then brought a steel chair into the equation, first nailing Renfrew with it and then, when Renwick appeared to have Hendry set up for the Angels Wings, Lewis demanded that Renwick send him to the ropes in order that Lewis could nail Hendry with the chair.  Renwick initially refused but finally gave in to Lewis' bullying, only for Hendry to reverse the move and Renwick was nailed with the chair instead, allowing Hendry to pin him for the victory.  Renwick was furious and a heated verbal encounter took place at ringside between Renwick and his SOS team-mates.

Hendry then took the microphone and announced that he had just pinned the Reckless Intent champion and challenged Renwick to put the title on the line there and then.  Renwick accepted and with Rawlins and Renfrew making sure that Leask and Lewis were "otherwise engaged", an impromptu title match took place.....and Hendry once again pinned Renwick to become the new champ and third member of the "Triple Crown" club.  Renwick sent the referee from the ring, before handing the belt over to Hendry and shaking his hand.  Lewis and Leask reappeared at ringside and Renwick threw his SOS hoodie in the face of Lewis before walking backstage with his head held high.....Scott Renwick has seen the light!!!!

Hendry was then joined in the ring by several of the roster members and made an emotional speech, thanking the fans and Reckless Intent for their support.  To see Hendry win the title and his speech, click here.

This was an incredible show and with the surprise title match to finish it off, I was gobsmacked.

The next Reckless Intent event is the Super BOWL tournament which is split over two dates.  The qualifying rounds take place at Sunday Slam at the RI Unit on 19 April with entry only £5 on the door.  The final of the tournament will take place on 2 May at Murieston Scout Hall and tickets are available online.  Details of matches and ticket available can be found on the Reckless Intent Facebook page

Review: SWE Uprising: Hearts on Fire

Saturday 28 March 2015


If Livingston and Reckless Intent is my second home, then Dundee and SWE is my third and the last Saturday of the month will find me at the Ardler Complex (unless its August - Caird Hall baby!) for their monthly Uprising show.  As the shows have become more and more popular, it has often ended up standing room only and, for the first time the balcony was opened to wrestling fans.

There was a pre-show match for advance ticket holders featuring two trainees from SWE's training school, JD Wilde and Kenny Kyd. A fairly decent display from both guys ending in a victory for Kenny.  I actually quite enjoy these matches - its good to see the talent emerging from different training schools and it also gives them a chance to feel what its like to be in front of a crowd before they hit the main card.

The main show began with an announcement that Chris Duke had been suspended after striking Bravehart at the previous show and that there would be a replacement for him on the commentary table....none other than Bravehart himself.

The first match saw Felix Fortune face Chaz Phoenix.  Fortune put up a good fight but Phoenix had him well in control when Conor Frost and Trident members Darren Blair, Steven "Air" Myles and Saint-George appeared and they each took their turn to perform their finishing moves on Phoenix.  Suddenly MDK, the Trident member who was replaced by Saint-George after sustaining an injury, appeared however instead of joining his old crew, he shocked everyone when he got in the ring and cleared it of everyone except Fortune who was then pinned by Phoenix.  Bravehart was furious and to add insult to injury, Chaz Phoenix then announced that with MDK now by his side, we were witnessing the rebirth of "The Syndicate".  He then called to Chris Duke, who was sitting in the audience, and reinstated him to his rightful place at the commentary table and as ring announcer.

Next up was Martyn Stallyon v Venym v Jackie Grady in a Triple Threat match.  Stallyon started well before being knocked from the ring, allowing Venym to gain the upper hand on Grady.  Stallyon returned to the ring to prevent either of his opponents making the pinfall.  With all three now in the ring, chaos ensued - Stallyon had a near pin on Grady, who was then taken out by Venym, who then found himself on the receiving end of a pin by Stallyon when Ian Ambrose appeared and attacked Stallyon.  Ambrose and Stallyon then battled their way through the crowd, up onto the balcony and down the other side into the backstage area.  While most of the crowd were focusing on the battle outside of the ring, Grady and Venym continued to go at it with Venym eventually claiming the victory.

The first match of the second half saw fan favourite LJT team up with Euan G Mackie against Trident members, Saint-George and Steven "Air" Myles, with Darren Blair hovering around ringside.  This was an incredible match and most definitely my Match of the Night.  All four guys really pulled out the stops on this and the end result was a delight to watch.  With Saint-George and Myles trying their underhanded tricks and double team moves and Blair trying to get involved, it was nice to see Myles taking out his own partner and being on the receiving end of an LJT/Mackie double team too.  The highlight of the match for me is shown in the photo - LJT had taken out Blair at ringside and Mackie had hit Saint-George and Myles with a double dropkick from the turnbuckle before sending them out of the ring.  Mackie then climbed to the top turnbuckle and cannonballed all three Trident members (and his partner) on the outside of the ring.  Back in the ring (and back in my seat) LJT seemed to be on fire but Myles managed to gain control and hit his 450 splash on LJT however he failed to score the pinfall.  There were a couple more near pins for both sides but finally, Myles tried to flip over the back of LJT and pull him down, but LJT dropped to his knees instead, cinching up the legs of Myles getting the three count.  This truly was a great match and even got a "This is awesome" chant (which was NOT started by me!)

After such a cracking match, the last person we wanted to see was Bravehart - but out he came to the ring and demanded that Chris Duke stand in the corner of the ring until he finished.  He then berated Duke for his actions at the previous event, dishing out insult after insult to the point it looked like Duke might haul off and punch him again.  Of course Bravehart had already considered this and threatened to fire Duke if he dared to raise his hand again and how it was so important for Duke to have a job.  I almost lost my voice at this point screaming at Duke to just hit him and I would arrange a whip-round for him!  Unfortunately he chose not to and returned to the commentary table looking somewhat shell-shocked while Bravehart got into verbal battles with myself and my friends as he left ringside.

The penultimate match of the night had Ian Ambrose against Massimo Italiano.  With Ambrose refusing to acknowledge the loss of the SWE Heavyweight Championship to Joe Hendry at the last event, he came out to the ring carrying a home-made version of the SWE belt then demanded that Doctor Grue re-announce him as the reigning SWE Champion of 428 days.  Ambrose then took the microphone and announced that as a "fighting champion" that this match would be for his SWE title, much to the amusement of the crowd and a few chants of "Joe Hendry, Global Hero" were made.  The match itself was great, with some lovely moves and several near pins from both guys.  Ultimately the match was decided by the interference of Stallyon, who superkicked Ambrose, handing his nemesis the win by disqualification, retaining his "title".

The main event saw Scotty Riccio put the Future Division Title on the line against Jay the Jackal.  As expected, The Jackal used every underhanded tactic in the book in his efforts to regain the belt and his "Associate" was on hand to assist in any way necessary.  This was yet another great match and filled with controversy.  With Riccio having been subjected to outside interference on several occasions, he looked to be regaining some momentum when he was thrown into the corner and knocked down the referee.  The Jackal's "Associate" was quick to capitalise, hitting the ref with a boot to the face before turning his attentions to Riccio.  After The Jackal and his "Associate" hit Riccio with a double team move, a second referee appeared to make the count, however Riccio managed to kick out and an angry Jackal then decked the ref, knocking him out.  Riccio then went on the offensive, knocking the "Associate" from the ring apron before hitting a beautiful lionsault on The Jackal.  A third referee appeared as he pinned The Jackal and made the three count.  The crowd went nuts, however before he could call to the timekeeper to ring the bell, the "Associate" grabbed his feet and dragged him from the ring, causing his head to hit off the ring apron and leave him unconscious on the floor.  With the match still officially going, Riccio was beaten by both men and then, as the original referee came to, was pinned by The Jackal to become the new Future Division Champion.  The crowd were furious, as was Chaz Phoenix who appeared at ringside and announced that Scotty Riccio would get his rematch at the next Uprising on 25 April in the Ardler Complex.

A cracking, if unpopular, end to a great show - easily the best show SWE has put on since October when Paul London and Brian Kendrick appeared - and this time without the big name imports!  SWE goes from strength to strength and with their annual Hell For Lycra just a few months away, things can only get better.

Check out SWE on Facebook for details of their upcoming shows and ticket availability.  Tickets are also on sale for Hell For Lycra which will be held at the Caird Hall in Dundee on August 29th.

Review: Discovery Wrestling

Saturday 14 March 2015


As I am so far behind with my blogs and Discovery Wrestling have already released the entire show on YouTube, this is not going to be my usual review but just some of my personal opinions and observations.

We arrived slightly later to the venue than planned due to one of our group having to change travel plans - someone had jumped in front of a train and the line to Edinburgh was closed!  We still arrived in plenty of time and met up with our friends who had travelled from Dundee.    This was when we discovered that the ringside seating had been pre-allocated and we wondered if we would be seated together.  It turned out we were not, we were scattered around the ringside and I was allocated seats at a ringpost.  This means that almost every in-ring photo features turnbuckles and/or the ringpost.   The whole point of us arriving early at venues is to get seats together and good photo ops - unfortunately we had neither.  Some people left early and I moved to those seats to get some cracking pics during the final match between Chris Sabin and Damian Daniels.

Onto the show... after the amazing show at Meadowbank, the setup seemed rather sparse.  A chat with management later revealed that they were unable to use much of their lighting, etc due to the restrictions placed on them by the venue.  Still they made good use of what they were allowed to set up.  The audio, however, was terrible.  I don't know if it was a problem with the equipment or the hall acoustics but it was almost impossible to make out what was being said on the microphone, from the ring announcer to the wrestlers themselves - it was all just a muffled noise.

Another bugbear was one of the referees.  I remember reading once that the mark of a good referee is that you don't notice them during the matches until they are required to make their presence felt.  One of the referees was a little over-zealous, grabbing the wrestlers when in the corners without even attempting a five count and dancing around them in the ring to the point of actually getting in the way of them.

I am not going to review each match as you can watch the whole show yourself by clicking here!  I would like to mention a couple of  show highlights for me:-

Danny Boy Rogers was amazing in the four way match with Lou King Sharp, Aspen Faith and Martyn Stallyon.  Looking forward to seeing more of him in the future.

I loved the Wealdstone Raider video telling Joe Hendry he had no fans.  Was a bit confused when Damo was distracted by Ian Ambrose's entrance music allowing Hendry to get the roll-up and pinfall. I think it was supposed to be Rampage Brown's music.  Damo was not happy and chased after Hendry, who made his escape over the railings into the crowd right beside me so I did get some good pics there.

Since the fatal fourway at Meadowbank I have wanted to see a match between Lewis Girvan and Chris Sabin but with the "Y" Division tournament matches not yet announced, I was actually praying they would not be facing each other tonight....and it was answered.  Girvan faced Ian Ambrose and Sabin faced Damian Daniels, both winning their matches (and they were brilliant matches) to set up my dream match for the next show on 10 April - I cannot wait to see this!

Discovery's next show is at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre on Friday 10th April and as well as the Girvan v Sabin "Y" Division Championship, it will also feature the only Scottish appearance of The Young Bucks.

For information on this and their event on Friday 22 May, like them on Facebook

Review: SWE Uprising: Psycho Circus

Saturday 28 February 2015

Last Saturday of the month so I would be found in Dundee!  After an afternoon of shopping and a visit to Dr Noodles, Janet and I headed to the Ardler Complex for SWE's monthly Uprising show.

There was a pre-show match for advance ticket holders featuring two of the trainees from Hart & Soul Wrestling School, Alec Xander (sorry if this is spelled wrong) and Conor Frost.  Frost has recently made a few waves in both the SWE and Reckless Intent ring as a "renegade referee", making some very dubious decisions and feuding with Rawlins, which had him already set up as the heel.   The crowd were a bit quiet but that didn't stop me cheering and encouraging Xander who hit Frost with a massive elbow drop to take the win.  Both guys did well for their first match and I was pleased to see that Frost can wrestle better than he can ref!!!

After a short break to allow the rest of the crowd in, the main show began with a 10 bell salute to the late Drew McDonald.  The entire roster surrounded the ring and the crowd stood as Chris Duke tolled the bell.  A nice mark of respect which I was glad to be a small part of.

The first match of the main show saw Rawlins & Venym take on Scott "The Butcher" Renwick & Trident member Steven "Air" Myles.  Using the superhero theme, Rawlins came out as The Punisher and Venym had his hammer... which he placed in the centre of the ring and everyone had a go at lifting, including Rawlins, and failed before he moved it himself. (Still not sure about this hammer gimmick)  The match itself was good with some very nice double team moves by Rawlins and Venym and the obligatory cheating from Renwick and Myles.  Myles went for his 450 splash on Rawlins only to find the mat empty when he landed which was the beginning of the end for the bad guys.  With Rawlins doing a suicide dive on Renwick, Venym pinned Myles and took a very popular win.

With the celebrations still going in the ring, Bravehart appeared with Jam O'Malley and Nikki Storm.  Surprisingly they allowed Rawlins and Venym to leave ringside untouched and joined their comrades in the ring.  After consoling the losers on "being cheated out of the win" Bravehart turned his attention to SWE Co-Owner Chaz Phoenix, labelling him a coward.  Jam O'Malley then took the microphone and challenged Phoenix to face him in "Jam O'Malley's Fun House of Horrors".  Phoenix came out to ringside and Bravehart accused him of trying to back out of the match and said he either wrestled O'Malley or give up his shares in SWE.  Phoenix said giving up his shares was not an option and accepted the challenge to face O'Malley.  Bravehart then announced that this would be a 2-on-1 handicap match but did not reveal who would be partnering O'Malley.

Jay The Jackal and his "associate" appeared to join the commentary team as the first half main event was announced, Scotty Riccio would be defending the Future Division title against Felix Fortune.  After a cracking start by Riccio, Fortune took the upper hand and dominated much of the match, focusing on the knee of Riccio.  AS Riccio fought back, Fortune caught the 619 attempt but Riccio managed to nail his opponent with a crossbody from the top turnbuckle to score the pinfall and retain the title.  At this point The Jackal and his "associate" came to the ring.  Riccio knocked The Jackal from the ring apron while his "associate" attacked Riccio from behind, allowing the Jackal to return to the ring and the two beat Riccio down before The Jackal held up the belt, making it clear that he wanted it back.

The second half started with the 2-on-1 handicap match in which Conor Frost made his second appearance of the night, teaming with Jam O'Malley  to face Chaz Phoenix.  With both Bravehart and Nikki Storm also at ringside, this was never going to be easy for Phoenix.  O'Malley started the match and soon tagged in Frost, who was pretty much left in the ring to get on with it.  He made a good show against a slightly rusty Phoenix, however Phoenix soon started to get back into the swing of things and began to show the trainee who was boss.  As Phoenix went for the pin, Bravehart got up on the apron to distract the referee from the count and to allow O'Malley to get in and assist his partner.  The referee saw this and stopped O'Malley, while Phoenix continued his assault on Frost.  Unfortunately while the referee was busy with O'Malley, Bravehart grabbed the foot of Phoenix, bringing him down.  Frost hit with a splash, O'Malley let go the ref and Frost pinned Phoenix for the three count with Bravehart holding onto his feet.  With the match over, Bravehart, O'Malley and Frost began to beat on Phoenix until a rescue was made by the most unlikely of people, Chris Duke, who got into the ring and decked Bravehart, sending him and his cronies scattering.  The crowd went nuts as Duke assisted Phoenix back to his feet and Phoenix grabbed the microphone to tell Bravehart that "This is not over" and insinuating there would be a match at Hell For Lycra for outright control of SWE.

Nikki Storm made yet another appearance, having disappeared backstage at sometime during the previous match.  This was announced as a match, but actually came across more like a promo slot.  She took the microphone and starting telling everyone how wonderful she was before having a pop at SWE referee Edith Summer, who she had beaten a few months before at Seasons Beating.  Summer then came to the ring and told Storm how upset she was, that she had looked up to her and wanted to be like her, bursting into tears while Storm laughed.  Storm attacked Summer, then watched as her friend Jam O'Malley arrived and slammed Summer to the canvas before other referees put a stop to their antics.

Chris Duke and Doctor Grue took to the ring to do their first ever live Bell 2 Bell podcast segment.  First they interviewed Mikey who was supposed to be part of the evening's main event but he had surgery on his knee brought forward and was unable to compete.  Mikey promised that as soon as he was cleared to wrestle again, he would be back and it didn't matter whether it was Ian Ambrose, LJT or Joe Hendry who held the belt at the time, he would be coming for his shot at that title.  Then came the announcement regarding the two WWE Hall of Famers who will be appearing at Hell For Lycra.  A video montage played about the event and there was a picture at the end, which if you blinked you might have missed it...showing them to be Ted DiBiase and Terry Funk.  Great names but a bit disappointed in the reveal.

Finally it was time for the main event.  On Day 400 of his title reign, current SWE Heavyweight Champion Ian Ambrose would put the title on the line in a triple threat match against LJT and Joe Hendry.  There was action aplenty in this match, LJT went straight for Ambrose, then Ambrose and Hendry appeared to work together against LJT before finally turning on each other.  With the battle raging in the ring, a Martyn Stallyon promo appeared on the video screen which distracted Ambrose in particular.  As he stood at the ropes, screaming at the curtains for Stallyon to come out and face him, Stallyon appeared from the crowd and attacked from behind.  Joe Hendry went for the pin but Ambrose was not done yet.  LJT then attempted to capitalise, springing from the ropes to kick Hendry in the face but he was unable to make the pin.  Ambrose attempted to pin Hendry but was instead picked up and driven into the mat and this time Hendry was successful in scoring the pinfall to become the new SWE Heavyweight Champion.

So another Uprising came to a close.  A good show, although I felt it was a little heavy on the promo side this time with only 4 matches on the main show, however the quality of the main event made up for it and it was great to see the title change hands....even though the crowd would have preferred to see LJT with the belt.

The next SWE Uprising is on 28 March at the Ardler Complex with advance ticket holders getting early entry to the venue.  Check out SWE on Facebook for information on upcoming events, including their annual Hell For Lycra show in August, and ticket information.

Review: Reckless Intent presents Reckless Intent 3

Saturday 7 February 2015

This was the first Reckless Intent show to have a Bonus pre-show match for advance ticket holders and it appeared that everyone wanted to see it, as there were very few people who required tickets on the door!!

The pre-show match was a corker.  Billed as a Mystery Doors match there was a door in each corner, each with an envelope attached, containing details of the prizes to be won, one of which was the Hardcore Title.  To win the contents of an envelope, you had to put an opponent through the door, eliminating them in the process!  With 5 men and 4 doors, someone was leaving empty-handed and no-one would know who was the Hardcore Champion until after the match when the envelopes would be opened.  Davidian Fury won the first envelop by putting current Hardcore Champ Sam Crowe through a door, ensuring there would be a new champion at the end of the match.  Craig "The Firestorm" Valant took the second envelope after eliminating Fury before being put through the third door himself by AJ Russell.  Finally JJ Russell took the final envelope by putting his brother through the last door.  Then the envelopes were opened .... Davidian Fury won the chance to be guest host at Sunday Slam, AJ Russell won the Hardcore Title, Craig Valant won an Elton John CD and JJ Russell won Fish and Chips - and was so excited, you would think he had won the title belt!!  The action was not over, however, as Bobby Roberts came out to the ring, hit AJ Russell with a spear and pinned him for the Hardcore Title.  Westy then appeared to challenge Roberts but instead was hit in the head with the belt and Roberts left still Champion.

The main show began with the appearance of the SOS, dragging a dishevelled Jason McKinlay to the ring.  They sat him on a chair and berated him before they unmasked themselves one by one....first the mouthpiece of the group was revealed to be Graeme Leask, then UK Title holder Darren Lewis was unmasked and took credit for putting the group together before introducing the final member of their group....none other than Reckless Intent Champion Scott Renwick!

With the SOS still in the ring, Chris Renfrew came out for his match against Darren Lewis, however the match never happened as all three members of SOS beat Renfrew, using the steel chair.  The RI Originals, Rawlins and Mikey came out to make the save and acting GM Doctor Grue came to the ring and refused to allow the match to go ahead, despite Renfrew's protests that he was able to continue.  Instead a match was set between Lewis and Renfrew for the next show at Murieston on 4 April and Renfrew announced that if Lewis is going to have his friends there, he would be bringing some friends of his own, before making the NAK hand sign.

Next was Joe Hendry against Rawlins.  Before the match started, Rawlins asked acting GM Doctor Grue to remove Conor Frost as referee, citing Frost's previous questionable decisions.  This request was granted and an alternative referee , Brian Laing, took over.  Frost then announced that he had lodged an official complaint against Rawlins for putting his hands on him at Sunday Slam.  With Frost removed from proceedings, we were then treated to a cracking match.  With attempted pins and submissions from both guys, this match went back and forth but Rawlins attempted a flying headbutt from the ropes which Hendry avoided and capitalised on to take the pinfall.  A win for Hendry, but Rawlins appeared to accept a defeat where the referee was not a factor!

The first half main event saw Bobby Roberts pick an opponent for Saint-George and, very cleverly, picked Saint-George's friend and ally, Ian Ambrose.  The match began with the two friends refusing to fight each other before messing about, gently poking each other and acting like they had taken the hardest hit ever.  With the crowd getting annoyed at this blatant mickey-taking, Doctor Grue came out to the ring and restarted the match, demanding that they take it seriously or be fired.  The bell rang and Ambrose went straight for the pin.  Saint-George was shocked and angry and a proper match began to take place.....until Bravehart appeared and restored harmony between the friends.  All three then turned on Grue.  First they started stripping him of his shoes, jacket and tie and then began to bully him, demanding he hand the GM powers over to Bravehart.  Bobby Roberts made the save but a shaken Grue said it was too much for him and handed Bravehart the GM position.

The first match of the second half saw Saint-George pick Bobby Roberts' opponent and he chose the new acting GM Bravehart.  The first thing the new GM did was make it a 3 on 1 handicap match, leaving Roberts at the mercy of Bravehart, Ambrose and Saint-George and effectively handing Bravehart the win.  This was not enough for the "Better Together" crew and they continued to beat Roberts, tearing his Scotland flag and draping it over him before LJT came out to make the save.  As Bobby got to his feet however, LJT struck with a superkick and pinned Roberts to take the Hardcore title.  Immediately AJ Russell appeared and hit LJT with a spear before becoming Hardcore champ for the second time that night.  The action was not over as JJ Russell came out and hit his brother with a crutch and the title changed hands once again.  As Russell made his way backstage with the belt, Westy appeared to challenge him and once again took a whack to the head with the belt.

The penultimate match saw The Super Friends, Venym and Chris Echo, take on Jackie Grady and Westy.  Now I am not quite sure where Venym is going with his character - he came out carrying a replica of Thor's hammer and there was this weird skit with Echo not being able to lift it but Venym could...the crowd seemed to like it though but personally I don't think he needs the hammer gimmick!  Anyway the match was okay - Venym swung Grady around while Echo jumped over Grady's head which was cool!  Westy got his usual pop from the crowd which appears to be getting under the skin of Grady, who walked away and left Westy alone and allowed the Super Friends to take the win.

Finally it was main event time - Scott Renwick would put the title on the line against Mikey. Acting GM Bravehart made this match a No Disqualification, Anything Goes match, effectively stacking the match in favour of the newly revealed SOS member.  Now, anyone who has attended a RI show will be aware of how Mikey's mum Janet deals with seeing her son in matches and after the No DQ was announced, I was advised to keep Janet occupied and out of the hall.  I was partially successful - she sneaked in but soon left again in tears - but this meant that I did not witness the action as it happened, rather I was allowed to watch the video footage afterward in order to give my opinion for this blog and I thank Callum Kerr for the photo used as I was not able to get any shots of my own. There is only one word to describe this match and that is brutal.  Mikey dived straight into the ring and let Renwick know how angry he was with his fists.  This was no wrestling match...this was a fight!  As Renwick took the upper hand, he appeared to tell his SOS cohorts that he had this under control and they left....but they would return later! As Mikey started to gain an advantage, they returned, quickly followed by Rawlins to help even the numbers......in fact, just watch it for yourself by clicking here and check out Mikey's 18ft leap from a ladder inside the ring onto tables outside which ultimately led to Renwick taking the win!  Amazing match...definitely match of the night!!

The next Reckless Intent show is "No Going Back" on 7 March at the RI Unit and tickets will be available on the door priced at £7 for adults, £5 for kids or a family ticket (2 adults/2 kids) is £20.  Details of this event and all future events are on Facebook

Review: SWE Uprising: Guardians of the Kayfabe

Saturday 31 January 2015

Our trip to Dundee was a little longer than normal, as this time we were travelling from Manchester, having gone down there for the TNA show (which was pretty damn good but I am not blogging it as they did TV tapings which will air in March).

The first match of the night saw Scotty Riccio put the Future Division title on the line against Rawlins.  This was a cracking match with Rawlins going all out to take the belt and Riccio doing everything he could to hang onto it.  With the action spilling outside the ring, Rawlins smashed Riccio into the railings directly in front of us before returning to the ring to continue the punishment.  Riccio dodged the flying headbutt and managed to gain some momentum until he went for the 619 where Rawlins managed to grab his legs and went for a sharpshooter.  Unable to get the win, Rawlins went for another flying headbutt before using the crossface submission hold.  Somehow Riccio managed to manoeuvre this into a pin attempt and the hold was broken.  Suddenly Riccio had the upper hand and a successful 619 ended with Riccio scoring the pin to retain the belt.  Rawlins appeared to be irate, going to the commentary table to grab the belt, however he returned to the ring, handed the belt to the champion before shaking his hand.  Seems Rawlins ain't all bad after all!

Next out to the ring was Bravehart accompanied by Jam O'Malley, The Trident (minus Saint-George) and Scott Renwick, followed by Chaz Phoenix.  After a war of words between Bravehart and Phoenix, Bravehart stated that it was 5 on 1 and Phoenix wouldn't stand a chance as they attacked en-masse.  Felix Fortune appeared but rather than helping Phoenix, much to the crowd's surprise, he joined Bravehart's crew in the attack.  Bravehart was attempting to put the sharpshooter on Phoenix when Bobby Roberts appeared and cleared the ring - prompting me to shout that "in the face of 100% pure Scottish beef, they all turned into chickens".  Phoenix then announced that Fortune would face Roberts one on one....

Roberts wasted no time in dishing out some punishment to the former fan favourite, however Fortune was not going down as easily as expected.  Although Roberts dominated most of the match, Fortune managed a few good moves and tried to keep Roberts down using headlocks on the canvas.  Roberts is a very hard man to keep down though and rallied to punish Fortune some more, however Fortune lived up to his name when he managed to move out of the corner as Roberts came at him and instead hit the ringpost, Fortune grabbed the opportunity to roll up the big guy, pulling the tights for leverage and scored the three count.

The first half main event was an absolute corker of a match between "The Butcher" Scott Renwick and LJT, who has become the big fan favourite in Dundee in recent months.  From the outset, these guys just went all out to impress the crowd.  LJT started off the match with a stunning dropkick and looked to have Renwick well in hand until Renwick caught the crossbody attempt and dropped for the backbreaker.  The match continued in spectacular fashion, with near falls for both men.  The end was equally as spectacular as Renwick attempted the Angel Wings, hoisting LJT into the air only for LJT to somehow manage to flip his legs over the back of Renwick, unbalancing him until he dropped and as soon as LJT's feet hit the mat he bridged to take an awesome pinfall, which the crowd loved.  LJT then addressed the crowd, stating that he was the only man to have pinned current champ Ian Ambrose in the 371 days since he took the title and he deserved a title shot.  He ended his speech by saying his mother taught him "If someone hits you, you hit back.  If someone pushes you, you push back. If someone fights you, you fight back" and that he would be taking part in the Battle Royal and walking out with the No 1 contendership for the heavyweight title.

After the interval the action continued with a 20 Man Battle Royal.  As always, chaos ensued and it was difficult to keep track of all the action.  Conor Frost made his wrestling debut as Big Bad Bundy and became the immediate target for Rawlins to the extent that after "Bundy" was eliminated, Rawlins dived between the ropes to continue his assault on the man who had plagued him with poor decisions as a referee, but eventually returned to the ring and was one of the final men to be eliminated.  JJ Russell was an easy elimination for Scott Renwick, who gave him a push as Russell stood on the ropes in the corner calling out his "geez a chance" catchphrase to the fans.  Eventually it came down to Scott Renwick and LJT and the crowd were going nuts.  Unfortunately, Bravehart decided to interfere and as LJT delivered a kick to the SWE co-owner, Renwick took the opportunity to hit a clothesline and put LJT over the top rope.

The next match saw Massimo Italiano make his SWE debut against Jay The Jackal, who was accompanied to the ring by his "Associate".  Italiano had the advantage for the early part of the match until The Jackal's "Associate" caused a distraction allowing Jay to take upper hand for a short time.  Italiano was able to power through to retake the advantage so The Jackal feigned an injury outside of the ring and distracted the referee while his Associate entered the ring behind the big Italian and struck with a boot to the face.  The Jackal then crawled back into the ring and scored the three count.

The penultimate match featured the return of Euan Mackie against his former Z-List comrade Jam O'Malley.  This was not the usual comedy offering seen when these two enter a ring and there was a real feeling of bad blood between them.  With Bravehart accompanying O'Malley to the ring, Chaz Phoenix came out with Mackie to ensure a fair match.  Added to the mix was referee Edith Summer who had slapped O'Malley at Hell for Lycra.  Mackie sprayed Jam with the red mist, Jam retaliated with punches and slams.  Mackie put on a good show and appeared to have the match in his grasp.  As Mackie was on the turnbuckles, Bravehart grabbed his leg and attempted to pull him outside the ring.  Phoenix grabbed Bravehart but the distraction had given O'Malley time to gather himself.  O'Malley was disqualified after whacking Mackie with what appeared to be an inflatable gym ball, then continued his attack using a tricycle. He then turned his attention to the referee and attacked Summer, slamming her to the canvas.  After a final attack on Mackie with the trike, he left the ring area, pausing to attack the timekeeper on his way backstage.

The final match - and most definitely match of the night - was the SWE Heavyweight match between Champion #scumbag Ian Ambrose and Mikey.  With each determined to outdo the other and leave the ring holding the belt, there were no holds barred.  The match went back and forth with some tremendous moves however the action came to a halt when the lights went down and (after a few technical problems) the screen displayed the name "Stallyon".  The crowd then expected to see Stallyon make an appearance but this was not to be.  Mikey hoisted Ambrose on his shoulders and while turning Ambrose kicked the referee in the head, knocking him out.  Mikey then made several successful pinfalls but there was no referee to make the count.  Rousing the referee, Mikey made another pinfall attempt but the dazed ref made an extremely slow count, allowing Ambrose to kick out on 2.  Ambrose then turned the tables and caught Mikey in a submission hold and made the challenger tap out in order to retain the title.  The crowd were furious but the result stands.  I really hope to see a rematch between these two in the future.

Both the Future Division match between Riccio and Rawlins and the Heavyweight Title match between Ian Ambrose and Mikey are available to view online in SWEOnlineTV episode 3 - I totally recommend you watch them now by clicking here.

The next SWE event, Uprising: The Psycho Circus will be held at the Ardler Complex on Saturday 28 February and tickets are available now.  Check out the SWE Facebook for information on all upcoming events and tickets and subscribe to them on YouTube