Review: Reckless Intent presents Christmas Sunday Slam

Sunday 14 December 2014

Just a week after a cracking sell-out show at Murieston, we were back at the RI Unit for the final Reckless Intent show of the year and the crowning of the first Sunday Slam champion!  The day had started very wet and windy and being so close to Christmas it was unclear what sort of turnout there would be.  Fortunately the weather brightened and the unit ended up pretty full, maybe not a sell-out but it was close!  My biggest problem was the fact that I had lost my voice and Rob was facing Jackie Grady - how the hell would I cheer???

The first match of the afternoon was Falcon v JJ Russell.  This was Falcon's first appearance since Over The Top and he decided to keep us waiting - his music started....and continued....and finally a full minute and a half later he appeared, jumping straight into the ring and crouching in one corner facing the turnbuckles and completely ignoring the somewhat bemused crowd.  JJ Russell got a great reception from the crowd during his entrance and while the ref was making his checks, Falcon made a sneak attack, confirming his new heel status.  Falcon attempted to hide under the ring, hitting Russell with a surprise blow when he came looking for him and then battling outside the ring.  Back in the ring, Falcon continued to use underhand tactics and the referee seemed to be constantly making 5 counts.  Russell attempted to gain the momentum but unfortunately it was Falcon who took a very unpopular win.

Next out to the ring was Iron Fist, accompanied by Miss J, who took the microphone to announce that the fans were not taking the threat of Iron Fist seriously and demanded a match worthy of him.  She then called out Mikey and challenged him to face Iron Fist.  Mikey answered the challenge and while Iron Fist attempted to beat Mikey with brute force and strength, he had no response for the speed, agility and aerial moves of the fan favourite.  A few kicks to the head, a flying crossbody and an elbow drop soon weakened the bigger man and it was Mikey who was victorious, taking a seat in the crowd after his win while Miss J berated her charge for failing once again.

The final match of the first half saw Davidian Fury make his return to Reckless Intent, facing the "Beef from Beith", Bobby Roberts.  Fury gained the advantage for the early part of the match, using the ropes to choke Roberts and holding him in the corner with a knee to the throat before attempting to get the win by putting Roberts in a sleeper hold.  With the crowd cheering for him, Roberts managed to get back into the match and despite Fury's attempts to subdue him again, Roberts nailed him with a clothesline from hell before pinning him for the three count.  After taking the win, Roberts held out his hand to Fury, only to be rebuffed - looks like another sore loser!

The second half started with a rematch from Unleashed, Rawlins against Scott Renwick.  Once again we were treated to the skills, experience and wit of two great wrestlers but for me it was not as good as their previous match, simply due to the fact that with Rawlins now being a fan favourite too, there was that good guy/bad guy element missing.  The match ended in controversy - as Renwick lifted Rawlins in the Angels Wings, Rawlins caught the referee in the head with his boot, knocking him out, leaving no referee to count when Renwick had Rawlins pinned.  Another referee was sitting at ringside, none other than Conor Frost, who refused to take over as referee when, as Renwick attempted to rouse the ref, Rawlins struck and caught him in his crossface submission hold, however when Rawlins released his hold, Renwick struck back and Frost shot into the ring to make a fast three count and declare Renwick the winner before quickly leaving again.  With Rawlins fuming in the ring, Frost stood outside smirking as the crowd jeered, before Renwick and Rawlins shook hands and left ringside.

Next out to the ring was Jackie Grady, accompanied by "The Westler" West Grady and his opponent would be none other than Rob Mills!  Well obviously I am totally biased in favour of Rob but I know he's just starting out so I didn't have high expectations.  I was surprised that the loudest chant was actually for Westy - but that's only cos I had no voice!  Anyway Grady was all over this match and had just hit his "No Place Like Home" finisher on Mills when Westy entered the ring and mimicked the move.  Grady turned his attention to Westy to berate him, giving Rob the opportunity to roll up Grady and score the pinfall.....MY BOY WON!!!  I did get video footage of the match - its not the greatest quality but you can see it on the Loudmouth Facebook page.

We then had the "Sambroso Maestro Culture Class".  Sambroso made his way to the ring, holding a Paul Hollywood calendar and handing out small oranges to kids in the crowd, leaving the last one still in its net bag on my seat!  Once in the ring, he aimed to teach the crowd about culture as "the world does not end at the M8 on ramp".  Then holding up one of the little oranges he asked the crowd "Do you know what this is? It's a satsuma!"  I held up the little net bag and shouted as best as I could...."No it's not! It's a clementine - did you not read the label?" As he attempted to continue with his "lesson" over the laughter of the crowd, he was again interrupted, this time by the arrival of Juan El Loco Gato, stating "my name is Jeff" and "you've got no fans".  There was then a bit of a tussle between the guys leaving Sambroso on the mat and Juan repeating his wee phrases!

Finally it was time for the main event between AJ Russell and Venym to see who would be the first Sunday Slam title holder.   This was shaping up to be an absolute corker of a match as both guys wanted that belt and they held nothing back.  The majority of the crowd were firmly behind Venym although AJ Russell did have a small group of supporters. The match went back and forth, both guys getting 2 counts and it really could have been either guy's match but it unfortunately ended as a no contest when Falcon appeared, climbed to the top turnbuckle and took both guys out with a crossbody.  The bell rang to signal the match was over but Falcon continued his assault on Venym, before grabbing a microphone and lying facing the mat, he announced that he does not start shows, he finishes them and was angry that he had been overlooked in the tournament.  He then demanded that he be given an opportunity to become the first Sunday Slam champion.  Jason McKinlay appeared and agreed that as Falcon had never held the World or UK title belts, he was eligible to compete for the Sunday Slam title and he would grant the match, at which point Falcon left the ring.  McKinlay then continued to announce that the match would be a triple threat match between Falcon and the two men he had just cheated of their chance to become the first champion and this would be held at the next Sunday Slam event in January.  Personally I wasn't happy with this turn of events.  This was supposed to be the final of a tournament and I think that as Falcon wasn't part of the original tournament he should have just waited and challenged the winner....but then the heels never do the right thing so I guess it works in that aspect.

The show ended with the entire roster who were in attendance coming out to thank the crowd for their support throughout the year.

A good show but for me there was something missing.  I think now that Rawlins is one of the good guys, we really needed either Saint-George or Darren Lewis on the card as there was no real heel interaction with the crowd.  Everyone loves to hate the heels and usually there is at least one occasion during a show where a heel gets right in the face of someone in the crowd and this didn't happen.  Yes, Falcon was heel but there was no interaction between him and the crowd, not during his initial match nor during his interruption of the main event.  He did not acknowledge the crowd in any way, refusing to even look at them.  In fact the only heel/crowd interaction was when referee Conor Frost screwed over Rawlins and got his first "Conor Sucks" chant!

The next Sunday Slam takes place on 25 January at the RI Unit.  Matches are starting to be announced and we will finally see the first Sunday Slam Champion crowned after a triple threat match between Falcon, AJ Russell and Venym.

Matches are also being announced for the next main show to be held at Murieston Scout Hall on Saturday 7 February.  Tickets are on sale now and advance ticket holders will gain early entry to the venue and a special preshow bonus match for the Hardcore Title.

Make sure to like their Facebook page to get updates for upcoming events, links for tickets and video content.

Review: Reckless Intent presents Sunday Slam

Sunday 24 August 2014

With most wrestling shows starting in the evenings and finishing between 9.30 and 10pm, Reckless Intent are introducing some Sunday afternoon shows with a view to accommodating the younger fans running from 2pm until approximately 5pm.  This was the first of their Sunday Slam shows and there were a few familiar faces amongst the crowd, Scott Renwick, Darren Lewis and Mr News.

The first match of the afternoon was scheduled to be AJ Russell against his brother JJ, however JJ had refused to fight and AJ issued a challenge to anyone on the roster.  The challenge was answered by Mike Hawke.  Now I am still not sure what this guy is all about.  He comes out top to toe in camoflage with an American accent but whether he is face or heel is not obvious.  There is no trash talk or nastiness and this means the crowd doesn't really know how to react to him.  Anyway, a decent warm-up match with Russell taking the win.

The next match saw the wrestling debut of one of the regular referees "Wild" Westy, facing off against Juan Loco Gato.  Usually a fan favourite, Juan was upset by the fact that the majority of the crowd were cheering Westy.  Juan tried to take his frustration out on Westy but this was Westy's day and he took the three count to the delight of the crowd.  An upset Juan then turned toddler for the mother of all tantrums and was further jeered and taunted by the contingent of fans hold up signs in support of the winner.

Next Venym came out to the ring, getting a microphone and trying to blow his own trumpet and complaining that the crowd did not appreciate him and the hard work he put into his matches, however he was cut short by the entrance of Sweet Chavi Sanchez in his trademark trackies and burberry cap and carrying a bottle of Irn Bru.  There was an unexpected comedy moment when he handed the bottle to Mr News, who opened it and ended up soaked.  Once in the ring, Venym tried to insult Chavi and Chavi asked him how this would work and could he call his pals to "gie him a doing".  While initially Chavi had the upper hand and added some comedy by with moments like pulling Venym's beard, it was only a matter of time before Venym began to dominate the match and took the win.  But you can't keep a good Chavi down and after Venym had left ringside he was "resusitated" with some Irn Bru and treated the audience to a dance - Chavi style!

After a short interval, the second half started with Jackie Grady facing Disturbed.  With Grady refusing to get into the ring, the crowd start chants of "You're a Diva", "You're a Jessie" and the absolute classics started by Scott Renwick and Mark O'Sullivan "You've Got A Cups" and "Training Bra".  Finally Grady got into the ring and the match started but after telling him he slapped like a girl, he dared me to come into the ring and try it...I responded by saying he was such a Jessie that he was too scared to come out and face me and shut up and get on with the match!  With Disturbed having the momentum, Grady kept trying to escape and endured several chants of "chicken" and "make him squeal" however it was Grady who would have the last laugh when he scored the pin to take the win.

Photo by Andrew West

Next out was new Reckless Intent World Champion Saint George, who, after baiting "The Superstar" Darren Lewis, issued an open challenge to anyone who wanted a crack at the title.  The challenge was answered by former Hardcore champ, Wee Jimmy who was sitting in the crowd.  After a couple of quick slams, Jimmy was pinned and Saint-George asked for a real challenge.  Stand up Scott Renwick...however it appeared Saint-George was not so willing to face Renwick, telling him to sit down and shut up as he is not medically cleared to wrestle.  "No, its cos you're a chicken" I yelled...and then it was the turn of the Loudmouth.....yes, I actually got up on the ring apron and called that annoying little twerp out and challenged him to back up his Facebook posts and face me.  In the age of equality and mixed wrestling matches, he actually pulled the "I'm not fighting a girl" card!!  Just as I was about to slap his face, he turned away as Chavi entered the ring to take on his challenge.  A quick 1, 2, 3 and Saint-George was complaining that it was too easy and called for his next challenger...

....and the response came from AJ Russell, making his second appearance of the day.  This was a pretty good match, with Russell pulling of some lovely moves and the crowd behind him 100%  Unfortunately it was not to be and after several near falls by both guys, it was Saint-George who got the three count and retained the belt, bragging once more about how easy it was!

The main event, and Match of the Day (wow that sounds like a football term!!) was the Tag Match between The Gatecrashers, Christopher Saynt and Dave Conrad and the Reckless Intent Originals, Mikey and Rawlins.  This was going to be interesting from the outset as Mikey and Rawlins have had issues in the past - would they be able to put their issues aside and work together?  Even Conrad addressed this in the ring and after stating that slipping Rawlins the steel tray during his match with Bobby Roberts was not done for Rawlins benefit and having no allies at Reckless Intent, he had a tag partner he could trust to have his back.  With Saynt and Rawlins kicking things off, I did something I thought I would never do...I started a "Let's Go Rawlins" chant...and he even came out to ringside to stand beside me while I did it!  Back in the ring, the Gatecrashers took the upper hand for much of the match, keeping Rawlins isolated, making quick tags and having one member distract the referee while the other dealt some illegal blows or to stop him seeing a tag made.  Finally getting tagged in, Mikey looked to make short work of Saynt, however with Mikey holding Saynt, Rawlins looked to kick him in the face, Saynt ducked and Mikey took the boot instead, sending him sprawling out of the ring.  The Gatecrashers capitalised on the confusion, and Conrad quickly pinned Rawlins to take the win.  With Mikey climbing back into the ring, would be see all out war between the Originals?  Not this time - they shook hands and left to cheers from the crowd.

Reckless Intent have Saturday shows on Saturday 20 September and 4 October, with the next Sunday Slam on 19 October.  For information on shows and tickets, check out their Facebook page.

Review: Reckless Intent presents Proving Grounds

Saturday 28 June 2014

Another early start so Rob could help out left me sitting outside finishing some signs for the show!

Unfortunately Ring Announcer Jason McKinlay was ill, so we had to endure Saint-George Bernard as both the announcer for the night as well as acting General Manager.  The show started with Saint-George and John Long coming out to the ring to remind people that it was Armed Forces Day and that Reckless Intent were running a special raffle to raise money for the armed forces charity, SSAFA https://www.ssafa.org.uk/. (Tickets for this raffle are still available and the draw will take place at the next event, Cruel Summer on 9 August so if you plan to come along, remember to bring some money for raffle tickets too.)

And onto the show....first out to ringside was Manlon who called Hardcore Champion, Wee Jimmy into the ring and promptly pinned him to take the title under the 24/7 rules.  Then Juan El Loco Gato came out and pinned Manlon to take the belt, only for Wee Jimmy, who was still standing in the ring to quickly roll up Juan to regain the title before quickly exiting the ring with his belt.  A stunned Juan and Manlon then faced off against each other in what had to be one of the funniest things I have ever seen. First Juan grabbed referee Westy and took his ref shirt and tried to instigate a match between Manlon and Westy.   Manlon was having none of it and quickly took the action to Juan, who eventually returned the ref shirt to Westy.  The match
continued in a comedy vein with Juan asking the crowd who was more manly, Manlon or Westy, then hugging Manlon during grappling sessions.  After smacking Manlon's face against his thigh several times, Juan jumped down and had the audience rub it better....and I was one of those "lucky" people!!  The fun continued when, using a remote control, Juan "paused" Manlon before hitting him with a low blow then hit play to watch Manlon writhe in agony.  Then Manlon grabbed the remote and returned the favour, before Juan used it for a final time to have Manlon punch himself in the face.  There was then a period of serious wrestling during which Manlon attempted his submission hold but Juan got to the ropes.  The match ended with Juan executing a frog splash from the top rope and scoring the 3 count!

Next match pitted Venym against Disturbed.  This match started off fairly straight forward with the crowd cheering for Disturbed against a very vocal Venym but then got a bit confusing as a second Disturbed appeared, knocking both the original Disturbed and Venym down with a crossbody from the top rope.  Venym was knocked from the ring, leaving the two Disturbeds to fight each other..and the confused crowd almost silent.  When Venym grabbed Disturbed 2 and dragged him outside the ring, Disturbed 1 did a suicide dive through the ropes to take both men out.  Back in the ring, Venym took the upper hand over Disturbed 1 going for a submission when Disturbed 2 made the save and attempted to pin Disturbed 1.  The match ended when Disturbed 1 ripped the mask from Disturbed 2 and left the ring, and while Disturbed 2 tried to cover his face with his hood, Venym rolled him up and took the win. Where the "Disturbed Saga" is going, I haven't a clue but I am sure it will become apparent soon!

Next out to the ring was Jackie Grady, who took the microphone to address the fact that he had issued a challenge to DCT who had been training in Romania and that as DCT had failed to show up and told referee Westy to start the match, count to 10 and then name Grady the winner.  As the count reached 7, the music blared and out came DCT.  A flummoxed Grady was then subjected to chants of "chicken" as he refused to re-enter the ring.  DCT took the advantage in the early part of the match, however Grady soon resorted to underhand tactics to get back into it.  As the momentum swung back in the favour of DCT, Grady managed to execute a swinging neckbreaker, following it with a sleeper hold but DCT managed to reach the ropes.  After nailing Grady with a DDT which sent him out of the ring, DCT lifted him back into the ring and after an unsuccessful pin attempt, was rolled up by Grady who, with his feet up on the second rope, scored the pin.

After a short interval, the action continued with a UK Title match between current champion Mikey and Dave Conrad.  Conrad first addressed the crowd and said that what had happened at the last event was a misunderstanding and that he wanted a fair match with Mikey for the title, then offered his hand for Mikey to shake and promptly kicked him in the gut.  With Conrad dominating the early part of the match, Mikey showed great heart, getting some hits here and there but Conrad would quickly subdue him again with a hard clothesline or slam into the corner.  A superb missile dropkick from the top rope started the momentum swing into Mikey's favour, followed by a standing dropkick in the corner then the "coast to coast".  After failing to score the pinfall, he was unable to get the bigger guy up for the "go to sleep", allowing Conrad to hit back with a massive powerbomb but when Mikey kicked out, Conrad started on Westy (and not for the first time) for not counting quickly enough before starting on a kid at ringside, allowing Mikey time to recover and finally execute the GTS and score the 3 count, retaining his title.  As Mikey celebrated in the ring, a masked man in a New Blood hoodie entered the ring, attacked him and quickly left.  Mikey then took the microphone and reminded the crowd of Jackie Grady's underhand tactics at the Super Bowl, hiding under the ring during the match then eliminating Mikey to take the title and how Mikey had then taken the title from him at Blackburn Gala Day after stopping him from pulling the same stunt.  He then offered Grady a rematch at the next event, Cruel Summer on 9 August.

Just before introducing the next match, Saint-George Bernard decided to get into a spat with a guy in the audience as his ego was obviously feeling it was not getting enough attention.  He then started on me again - the poor deluded Englishman still hasn't realised he will never win a war of words with me.  He then introduced John Long, who was to face Lowblow, with each man's job on the line.  Long started mouthing off, berating Lowblow with support from Saint-George.  It was around this time that I had to leave the unit for a few minutes to deal with an injury I had received to my foot earlier in the day so I missed Lowblow's entrance and the very start of the match, however I was told that when he was attacked by Saint-George while Long distracted the referee. After a stunned Lowblow was shoved back into the ring, Long took full advantage, using choke holds and yelling that Westy worked for him and that he better do as he was told.  I returned to the unit to see Lowblow being attacked again by Saint-George while Long was yelling in Westy's face before slapping the young referee. While Lowblow kept fighting, Long continued to use underhanded and illegal tactics and illicit the additional outside interference throughout from Saint-George.  Finally Lowblow started to gain the advantage, managing to get some revenge on both men both in and out of the ring, however Saint-George was not got going to allow this to continue and pulled Westy from the ring and knocked him down to the floor and second referee Adam was also subjected to the same fate.

Saint-George stripped the referee shirt from Westy and putting it on himself, declared himself the new referee.  Lowblow nailed Long with a kick and went for the pin but Saint-George carried out a slow count, inciting Lowblow to attack him.  Saint-George then hit him with a stunner, placed Long on his chest and made a fast count, declaring Long the winner.  With Long's job now safe, he then announced that Lowblow would have a final chance to secure his position in Reckless Intent, by winning a match at Cruel Summer against Rawlins!

Finally it was time for the Main Event, a match for the Reckless Intent World Title between Rawlins and Bobby Roberts, a fantastic confrontation which scored as my Match of the Night.  With the crowd firmly on "Team Bobby", Rawlins was unhappy with the chanting and, unable to get them to stop, took his frustrations out on the heavily strapped elbow of Roberts.  The momentum swung back and forth, with Roberts using his size and strength advantage, only for Rawlins to use his cunning and returning to the injured elbow.  When the action spilled out of the ring I took that as my cue to move out of my seat to protect my injured foot...and a good call it was! Rawlins knocked Roberts to the ground, jumped back into the ring and dived out between the ropes onto Roberts, only the big guy caught him and slammed Rawlins into the ringpost.  Back in the ring, momentum once again swung back and forwards, first Rawlins regained the advantage by again focussing on the elbow of Roberts then Roberts swung Rawlins from one corner to the other, slamming him into the turnbuckles.  The match ended when, after Roberts hit Rawlins with
a massive clothesline and went for the pin, Dave Conrad appeared at ringside distracting Roberts.  As Roberts turned to referee Westy to ask what was going on, Conrad slid a metal tray to Rawlins who slipped it inside his vest.  Roberts then turned his attention back to Rawlins, hitting him with a spear which knocked both men down.  As the referee count reached 7, Rawlins managed to roll over and get an arm across the chest of Roberts, taking the 3 count and retaining the title.

And so ended another great night of action.  Most of the matches are available to view on the Reckless Intent YouTube channel.  The next event "Cruel Summer" is on 9 August and matches have already been announced on the Facebook page so check it out and come along and watch some fireworks!

Review: Reckless Intent at Blackburn Gala Day

Saturday 14 June 2014

This was a wrestling event with a difference.  I have to admit that I haven't been to a gala day in years.  When Rob was younger, he found the crowds, noise and general chaos too much to handle so it was just another thing to avoid.  As he got older, his ability to deal with the crowds, noise and chaos improved, but his interest in the shows and stalls diminished.  As a result, I had absolutely no idea what a gala day entailed and how a wrestling show could be incorporated into it.

Our day started early and we met up with some of the crew at the RI unit at 8.45am, then it was off to Blackburn to get set up.  The first thing that had to be decided was whether the ring would be set up outdoors or in the local sports centre.  It was very overcast but forecasts said it would brighten up so outside it was.  The next hurdle was to get the van over to where we would be setting up without getting stuck in the muddy sections.  After that it was time to build a wrestling ring....and I think I gave a few of those boys a bit of a shock when I got stuck in - just call me She-Ra!!  Once the ring was up, it was time to get the barriers up and backstage area sorted.  It was then time for a well deserved break and a wee spot of lunch while the boys have their planning session.  Because Rob is training with Reckless Intent, I am a little more involved in their shows than other promotions but my one rule is that I don't want to know what goes on in the ring until it happens.

At 1.30pm the show was ready to start and a small crowd began to gather.  Rather than picking my usual spot to watch and cheer/jeer the lads, I watched to see who I thought were getting into the matches, then made my way to that area and tried to start some chants.  Some folk joined right in, while a few others eyed me warily while staying silent. Another thing that surprised me about the show is that, because it was a small part of the Gala Day,
I assumed that there would be three or four matches to give the crowd a wee taste of the "Reckless Intent Experience" but no, they actually put on a full show with 6 one-on-one matches and a 10 man elimination match for the UK Title.  And so onto the wrestling...although I apologise if this seems like more of results list than a proper review of each match as I was wandering around a fair bit.....

With the General Manager John Long in action, the guest GM and Ring Announcer for the day was my biggest fan, Saint-George Bernard.  As he took to the ring to bore...I mean regale.. us with his musings (and whinging about his broken thumb), the bagpipes of a local pipe band started up, much to his annoyance and the amusement of the crowd!

First up, current UK title holder Jackie Grady faced Juan El Loco Gato in a non-title match.  The crowd were not impressed with Grady's cockiness, however they loved Juan's cheeky and colourful character and were firmly behind him throughout the match.  Unfortunately Grady won the match, but Juan won the crowd!

With the running battle between John Long and Lowblow coming to a head on 28 June at Proving Grounds, both men had "warm-up" matches at this event.  John Long faced Chavi, who came out to the ring with a bottle of Irn-Bru instead of his usual Buckfast (well it was a Gala Day after all).  The crowd loved it, especially the kid Chavi handed the bottle to.  The match went back and forward with the crowd chanting for Chavi, however it wasn't enough to keep Long from taking the win.

 

In the second "warm-up" match, Lowblow faced Venym.  With Saint-George getting in the face of Venym at the start, warning him not to let Lowblow win, the match seemed stacked.  The match saw some good moves from both men, however despite the warnings, it was the crowd favourite Lowblow who took the win...although I didn't actually see the end of this match as I was busy getting my photo taken with another blue-haired phenomenon, Sonic the Hedgehog!!

After a short interval it was back to the action and first up, Disturbed v Disturbed.  This was a really weird match which was very difficult to get into.  With two identical figures in the ring it was impossible to cheer as you were cheering both men and with each making identical moves and making the appropriate counter moves it was more a dance than a match.  With the crowd pretty much silent in their confusion, this ended in a double count out when the Disturbed ones took their battle outside of the ring and backstage!

Next up, Mikey against Darren Lewis.  Lewis appeared without his glittery, feathery robe and looking plain mean.  This was quite a brutal match, with the action taking place both inside and outside of the ring.  Lewis used his size advantage to dominate much of the match, however the crowd were delighted to see Mikey turn the tables and take the win.  However, once again, a mystery figure in a "New Blood" hoodie appeared to attack Mikey.  Will he appear again at Proving Grounds?

 

The penultimate match saw Rawlins face Johnny Lions.  I had only seen Lions a couple of times before in SWE shows and the last time was in October 2013.  The first thing I noticed is that he had bulked up some and was looking really good.  This was another great match which saw several near falls for both men and a foot on the rope saving Rawlins from losing his title.  There were some cracking moments, such as Lions holding Rawlins in a suplex for what seemed like forever.  This was a cracking match and scores my vote for Match of the Day (because it was an afternoon show).  Despite his best efforts, Lions was unable to take the win and Rawlins retained the gold....and got a faceful of silly string to boot.  I really hope I get the chance to see Lions in action again soon.

Finally we had a ten man elimination match for the UK Championship.  It as an over the top rope battle royal style until down to the final four when pinfalls and submissions would also count.  The start of the match was utter chaos and much of the action took place outside of the ring....and even over the crowd barriers.  At one point, with the majority of the wrestlers outside of the barriers in a massive battle, one of the Disturbed jumped on them from the roof of the van.  Controversy reigned again as once back in the ring, Lowblow eliminated John Long and Venym, only to be eliminated himself when
Saint-George got into the ring and threw him out!  Jackie Grady tried to reprise his trick of hiding under the ring, but this time Mikey was having none of it, dragging him out and making him compete properly.  Things settled as we got down to the final four, Jackie Grady, Mikey, Johnny Lions and Darren Lewis.  Johnny Lions and Mikey got the pin on Lewis before Grady eliminated Lions over the top rope, leaving Mikey and Grady to fight it out for the title.  Mikey took the upper hand and kept it, finally delivering the Go To Sleep and pinning Grady to become the new UK Champion.  Click here to watch a highlight video of it - seriously, do it, it's damn good!!

Then it was time to strip everything down (once again I got stuck in), pack up the van then head back to the RI Unit to unload again.   I tell you, I have a whole new appreciation for all those guys in all the promotions I visit.  There was a lot of heavy lifting and carrying...and then the boys had to get into the ring and entertain too!  I decided I had earned the right to a few beers when I got home and that's exactly what I did....only after 2 beers I was wiped out and in bed by 10pm....but I had an absolute blast and I hope the lads will let me help out again when they appear at next year's event!

Reckless Intent have their next event "Proving Grounds" on Saturday 28 June in Livingston.  For more information, check them out on Facebook or their website.  Also you can see matches from previous events on their YouTube Channel