Review: PWE - The Road To Revolution

Saturday 9 May 2015

It had been a while since we had been to Ayr and we were looking forward to this show.  While there was platinum packages available, we decided to go with the silver option as we had already met the big stars at previous events and silver still got us early entry for the bonus pre-show match. We even took a couple of friends, Janet and Fiona, along with us!

Said pre-show match was a corker with Saqib Ali facing off against "The Best Young Wrestler in the World" Lewis Girvan.  I've seen both these guys wrestle a few times now and when your pre-show is of this calibre, you know the main show is going to be stunning.  A very nice match where both guys were able to showcase their talent despite the shortness of the match.  Really enjoyed this one and it was nice for Janet to be able to cheer for Girvan this time as he took the victory!

The main show began with the appearance of TJ Rage & Davey Blaze to take on Tag Team Champion Lou King Sharp, who had released a video in the run up to the show announcing that his partner for this match would be PWE owner Lionheart and had cheekily named the team Lion King!  As Blaze and Rage waited in the ring, Sharp announced the arrival of Lionheart who failed to appear.  Sharp was invited to get into the ring, lie down and make it easy on himself and eventually Lionheart reluctantly made his appearance.  Rage and Blaze concentrated on isolating Sharp and the wee guy took some amount of punishment before Lionheart was let loose.  After dropping Rage, he delivered a cracking frog splash on Blaze and Lion King took the victory by pinfall.  After the match, Rage and Blaze asked Sharp to come into the ring and shake their hands and agree to a rematch.  Despite Lionheart telling him not to, Sharp accepted, only to be told that he had just agreed to a 3 on 1 handicap match at the anniversary show in August.

Next up was the clash of the heavyweights as Iestyn Rees faced Chris Masters.  To be absolutely honest, I was a bit disappointed with this match and actually said I wished they had given Saqib Ali and Lewis Girvan this slot instead!  Masters really appeared to be just going through the motions and looked like he didn't actually want to be there which was a let down as I have seen this guy before and he really can put on a good show when he wants to.  Rees took the victory and quickly started antagonising the crowd.  A video then was played and it was announced that Rees would be facing Drew Galloway at the Anniversary show on 8 August.

Next up was a Fatal Fourway match with Joey Hayes v Martin Kirby v Kenny Williams v El Ligero.  This match was fast and furious with all four pulling off some lovely moves. A couple of highlights were when Kenny Williams got some amazing height from the top turnbuckle when going for a dropkick on Hayes who was halfway across the ring and when Hayes managed to catch El Ligero with a boot when he sprang from the ropes, before dropping both Williams and Ligero on their faces at the same time.   Despite the crowd being behind El Ligero and Williams, it was Martin Kirby who was victorious as he quickly rolled up Hayes after that stunning move to take the pinfall.

Just before the next match, another video was played announcing the appearance of  Tommy End at the 4th Anniversary show on 8 August.

The first half main event saw The Coffey Brothers v The Addiction (Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian) for the Ring of Honor Tag Team Titles.  This match can be described in one word - WOW!!!!  This was by far my Match of the Night.  Between the action in the ring and the banter between Janet and I with Christopher Daniels, it was brilliant.  I think my favourite moment of the match is captured in the picture - both Coffey Brothers had been knocked from the ring and Daniels bounced off the top rope before doing a backflip onto them at ringside right in front of me - totally amazing.  This incredible match came to an end when Mark Coffey inadvertently hit his brother before being hit by the "Celebrity Rehab" finisher and Kaz scored the 3 count.  The Addiction celebrated their win as Joe Coffey looked on from ringside, before getting back into the ring to confront his brother.

During the interval, The Addiction returned to the ring for fans to have their photo taken with them and despite the verbal abuse during the match, Janet and I took advantage of the opportunity.

First match of the second half saw "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson face off against Noam Dar.  After my normal antagonising of Thomson which received Dar's approval and him giving me a walking stick (which security quickly took from me) the match got underway.  As usual, Thomson used every underhanded tactic he could against his young opponent.  Grado appeared at ringside to cheer on his pal but actually caused a distraction and Thomson attempted the roll-up.  He was unsuccessful this time but Grado would prove to be the catalyst for the match ending the way it did.  Dar went for the dropkick but Thomson pulled the referee in front of him and it was the ref who went down.  Thomson then attempted to use a steel chair on Dar but Grado grabbed the chair from behind to stop him.  Grado then went to hit Thomson with the "wee boot", only for Thomson to drop out of the way and Grado dropped his friend instead.  Thomson took advantage, scored the pinfall and as Grado chased after an angry Dar, attempting to apologise, Thomson took the microphone and announced that he had just beaten the number one contender for the heavyweight title and demanded to know where that left him and that he would not leave the ring until he got an answer.  Lionheart came out to give him his answer - a video was played showing that he would be facing Austin Aries at the show on 8 August.  (Unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances, it was later announced that Aries would no longer be able to make this show and that Samoa Joe would be appearing instead, and will face Damian O'Connor)

The penultimate match was Kid Fite v Big Damian O'Connor.  I love Big Damo - how a guy that size can be so agile and pull off some of those moves is just incredible to watch and against a guy like Kid Fite, this match was guaranteed to have everyone going and it did.  I was so into this match, I even forgot to take any photographs for half of it.  Fite gave it everything but it didn't save him from being dropkicked into the corner before being Damo's doormat as the big guy stood on him then dropped the senton.  At this point, TJ Rage and Davey Blaze appeared and attacked Damo.  The referee called for the bell, announcing Damo as the winner by disqualification.  With Kid Fite back on his feet, it was 3 on 1, until Wolfgang appeared to make the save.

The main event saw Grado put the PWE Heavyweight title on the line against he first ever winner of said title, Andy Wild.  This was a good match but had a slightly strange atmosphere....Grado did not seem to have his usual cheer squad.  In fact at one point when he tried to get the crowd going, he was met with silence.  He did manage to parade around the ringside area holding Wild and inviting the kids to "give him a chop".  Wild on the other hand had the crowd chanting for him throughout.  Wild was robbed of the chance to regain the belt when Noam Dar made an appearance and nailed Wild with the title belt.  The ref called for the bell and Wild was declared the winner of the match by disqualification...but the title can only change hands by pinfall or submission, leaving Grado still Champion.  Grado and Dar appeared to have a confrontation in the ring, however it was shortlived and the two ended up dancing in celebration.

The 4th anniversary show on 8 August is shaping up to be another cracker.  Platinum and silver packages are already sold out but general admission tickets go on sale on Friday 26 June.  Tickets can be purchased from their website http://www.prowrestlingelite.com/shop/event-tickets

To keep up to date with match announcements for this show and find out about future shows, check out PWE on Facebook

Review: BCW Live in East Kilbride

Friday 20 February


Another sellout show for BCW at East Kilbride.  This time I had brought along a couple of friends as I had been raving about how good the BCW shows have been.  Unfortunately when we arrived there was already a lot of people who had braved the rain and snow and we were unable to all sit together.  I sat ringside with Janet and sent the boys off to sit together elsewhere!

First up was "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson against Wolfgang. Wolfgang started strong forcing Thomson to exit the ring to escape and endure the "chicken" chants but he was soon back in the ring and using his underhanded tactics to take the advantage such as using the ropes to choke his opponent before applying a camel clutch.  The action spilled out of the ring and continued directly in front of me before returning to the ring for Thomson's second camel clutch attempt.  Wolfgang does not go down easy though and he fought back to take the advantage and took a popular win after slingshotting Thomson into the turnbuckles and then rolling him up for the three count.  A nice match to start the show!

Next up was an Openweight Championship match between Lou King Sharp and current champ, Noam Dar.  Dar took control of the cocky Sharp and the action spilled outside of the ring.  Returning to the ring Sharp tried to gain the advantage, hitting Dar with cracking kick before taking to the turnbuckles.  Dar avoided and there followed some pin attempts by both guys before Sharp caught the leg of Dar and swung him round, only for Dar's foot to hit a lowblow on referee Sri Hari.  Sharp then hit Dar with a lowblow, who returned the compliment, before all three hit the mat holding their "bits"!  Sharp was the first to recover and went for a steel chair to attack Dar, however Dar had recovered sufficiently to thwart this plan and, taking the chair, hit a light blow to the back of the ref before tossing the chair back to Sharp.  Dar then scoop-slammed Sharp but when going for another the referee pushed Dar aside and scoop-slammed Sharp himself!  Dar then finished the job, taking the three count to retain his title and while Sharp crawled backstage, Dar set up the chair in the ring, sat ring announcer Simon Cassidy on it and draped his jacket and belt over him.

Next up was a tag team match to introduce some new trainees from the PBW Academy, Tony Martyns and Taylor Bellando, who would face the team of Switch & Saqib Ali.  Once again Switch reduced a small child to tears during his entrance and Ali managed to rile the entire crowd.  Martyns and Bellando got a great reception on their entrance however it was cut short as Switch and Ali attacked before the bell.  The youngsters pulled off a cracking double team move almost immediately after the bell, combining a backbreaker and double footstomp and got a near pin but from then on they were the victims of Switch and Ali's experience and cheating tactics.  They isolated Bellando for much of the match and antagonised Martyns into coming into the ring, forcing the ref to focus on keeping him out of the ring and allowing Switch and Ali to double team Bellando.  Despite having all the heart and the support of the crowd, the youngsters were outclassed and Ali scored the pinfall victory over Bellando.

The first half main event saw Jack Jester face Davey Blaze in a No DQ match. With the glass still boarded from the encounter between Damo and Drew Galloway, who knew what destruction might result from this match!  And what a match...Jester attacked Blaze before he even got in the ring and the two went at it hammer and tongs from start to finish.  At one point the action spilled out of the ring and Jester tried to put Blaze through the windows before they ended up ringside in front of me, where Blaze had the upper hand, shoving Jester onto the guy sitting a couple of seats along from me and trying to grab another crowd member's walking stick to use as a weapon.  Back in the ring a steel chair was brought into the mix with both guys using it to try to gain the advantage.  Finally Jester nailed Blaze with a tombstone piledriver to take the win.

The second half started with Damo v Joe Coffey and this was a stormer.  Each tried to knock the other down with shoulder blocks that rocked the ring with their impact but neither man would go down.  The action spilled out of the ring and continued right at my feet, with Damo taking the advantage.  Back in the ring, he continued to control things by working the back of Coffey using a camel clutch and then bear hugs!  Coffey tried to come back but ended up on the canvas with Damo standing on his chest before dropping the senton on him.  Once again, Coffey attempted a comeback with a cracking suplex but it was not to be his night as the big Irishman got Coffey up on his shoulder and drove him down to the mat before pinning him for the three count.

The penultimate match saw Aaron Echo face-off against Kenny Williams.  I had only seen Echo once before in a pre-show match and I have to say that I saw a big improvement in his skills.  While Williams dominated much of the match with his fast pace and aerial skills, Echo had a couple of cracking moments during the match, including a cracking suplex, and scored a couple of near pins.  But as they say "Kenny is the bollocks" (loving the new ring gear) and it was Williams who took the victory in a really enjoyable match.

Main event time and BCW owner Graham McKay got into the ring to thank the fans for another sell-out show, before asking retired MC Tommy if he would do the honours, which he agreed to do.  First out to the ring was Kid Fite, sporting a bit of a shiner and his usual bad attitude.  BT Gunn then came out to a huge pop before both men were stunned by the announcement of a third participant, Gunn's tag team partner, Stevie Xavier.  Now I love Just Uz, but I was really disappointed when this happened, as I was really looking forward to what would have been an amazing battle between Fite and Gunn.  As Fite said himself before the match got underway, they might be tag partners but neither man was going to let the other win.  The match itself was good, some great moves from all three and there was a moment when "Just Uz" appeared and hit Fite with that double kick to the head in the corner they do so well, but in the end Fite's prediction came true.  Fite had Gunn down in an anklelock submission when Xavier made the save, however, with Gunn down rather than focus on Fite and take his chance for the title, he instead grabbed the ankle of Gunn, giving Fite the opportunity he required to roll him up for a pinfall.  There appeared to be a bit of confusion however as it looked like the referee only made a two count but Fite left the ring, grabbed his belt and walked away, leaving Gunn and Xavier behind.  What this means for the future of the tag team champions is yet to be seen.

The next BCW event will take place on 4 April in Kilmarnock Grand Hall and will feature TNA stars Angelina Love and Davey Richards, as well as Marty Scurll and Drew Galloway.  Event and ticket information can be found on the BCW Facebook page

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

Friday 5 December 2014

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Review: PBW Capital Clash

Sunday 26 October 2014

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Review: Discovery Wrestling: No Fear, No Mercy

Saturday 11 October 2014

This was Discovery Wrestling's debut show and already there was a lot of hype on Facebook.  With several big American stars announced from the outset, there was always going to be a lot of interest in the show.  Al Snow was originally announced but had to withdraw due to TNA having shows in Japan at the time but we still had Mike Mondo, Chris Sabin and Crime Time, and a great selection of UK talent.

The day started early, as Rob and I were involved with the ring crew for the day.  After helping transport and set up the ring, we helped with merchandise sales, guiding people to the meet and greet area and generally helped with anything that needed done.  During the down time between the end of the meet and greet and the show starting, I had the chance to chat to a few of the wrestlers and was gobsmacked when Chris Sabin recognised Rob from the TNA meet and greet in January!

The show began with the arrival of Joe Hendry, who decided that for tonight, as he is an Edinburgh boy, he will be Local Hero instead of Global Hero.  He asked the crowd to join him in singing the National Anthem but first he wanted to put the whole Scotland v England thing to rest and was joined by Marty Scurll who would join the singing.  As everyone stood with hands on heart and prepared for a rendition of Flower of Scotland, Hendry and Scurll start singing God Save The Queen!!! The crowd were not happy at all and Local Hero quickly became Total Zero.  Enter Crime Time!  They came out to a fantastic response and after taking the mickey out of Hendry and Scurll, they got the crowd singing Flower of Scotland with them.  Just as it looked as though they were about to get into a brawl Theodore Long appeared on the video screen, announcing that as Grado was unable to make the show, he was making a tag match between Crime Time and Hendry/Scurll (who he kept referring to as Marty Squirrel) to take place later that evening.

The first match of the evening saw Liam Thomson v Martyn Stallyon, accompanied by Lady Debbie Sharpe.  This was a real role reversal, with local boy Thomson ditching his "bad boy" persona and being fan favourite, while Stallyon acted arrogant and wound up the crowd.  For the first time ever, I found myself cheering for Thomson.  This time it was Stallyon who relied on underhand tactics and the outside interference from Debbie Sharpe to gain the advantage after Thomson appeared to be in control of the match.  With Stallyon distracting the referee, Sharpe used her riding crop to beat and choke Thomson before Stallyon would capitalise, however with Thomson once again taking control and looking to score the win, Sharpe then distracted the ref, throwing her crop into the ring for Stallyon to use before rolling Thomson up and scoring a very unpopular win.

Next up was a tag team match between The Wild Lions (Andy Wild & Johnny Lions) and The Traditionalists (Michael Galahad & Robert Pendragon).  The Wild Lions entrance was brilliant - the guy who does the rap on their entrance theme, Martin Inches, came out and performed it live!  Both teams worked really well but it appeared that Johnny Lions got the biggest pop from the crowd.  With Wild taking an early advantage, The Traditionalists used a lot of sneaky tactics, in particular antagonising Lions and having referee Steven Magners stop him from entering the ring while they double teamed Wild in their corner to gain the upper hand.  Despite this, Lions landed a superb dropkick from the ropes on Galahad, which was followed up by a powerbomb from Wild and a legdrop from Lions on Pendragon to secure the win for the Wild Lions.

Next up was a match which could easily have been a main event match-up, Rampage Brown v Damian O'Connor.  There are not many guys to match Big Damo in size and strength and when these two collided, I swear you could feel it!  After a series of shoulder blocks which rocked the ring and crowd but dropped neither man, Damo took an early advantage, actually managing to stand on the chest of Brown and dropping a senton on him.  Brown refused to be beaten and fought his way free from sitting on the shoulders of Damo, before doing what many may have considered an impossible feat - he got the big Irishman in a piledriver before going for the pinfall.  Unsuccessful, he was once again hoisted aloft and somersaulted across the ring on the shoulders of Damo, however he recovered enough to move out of the way as Damo leapt from the ropes.  Brown then shocked and awed the crowd by delivering a second piledriver, this time putting the big man down properly and scoring the pinfall.

The first half main event was the Y Division 4 Man Elimination Match featuring Chris Sabin, Ian Ambrose, Lewis Girvan and Damian Daniels.  The match started with an amazing display technical wrestling by Girvan and Sabin in the ring which was just beautiful to watch.  I definitely heard someone in the crowd say they could watch these two all night and a chant of "This is awesome/This is wrestling" rang round the hall.  Of course #Scumbag Ian Ambrose wanted a bit of the glory and tagged himself in to face Sabin.  After Girvan was tagged in by Sabin, he became the target for both Ambrose and Daniels, who made a series of tags to keep him isolated.  Girvan fought back, launching himself through the ropes onto Daniels outside the ring, quickly followed by Ambrose.  Girvan had got back into the ring and went over the ropes onto Ambrose before Sabin springboarded from the top rope and launched himself onto all three men before Daniels scrambled back into the ring and hit them with a flying somersault -

totally amazing.  The action returned to the ring where once again Ambrose and Daniels worked together to isolate Girvan and eliminate him before Sabin hit them both with a double dropkick.  Sabin quickly rolled up Daniels and we were down to Ambrose and Sabin.  These two went at it hammer and tongs until Ambrose missed a double footstomp off the ropes, allowing Sabin to connect with a brutal looking kick to the head before finishing him off for the win.  The crowd were elated...Ambrose not so much.  He took to the microphone and stated he didn't come to be embarrassed and refused to leave the ring unless he was given another match so he could redeem himself, while the crowd chanted "You got beat!"  Suddenly music began to play and Deviation appeared.  After removing his metal spiked harness, he proceeded to annihilate Ambrose, leaving him lying in the ring once again to chants of "you got beat".

After a short interval, the second half resumed with the earlier announced match between Crime Time and Joe Hendry & Marty Scurll.  Crime Time were announced first and while JTG climbed the turnbuckles, Shad worked his way through the crowd before joining him in the ring.  Hendry and Scurll came out to boos and jeers.  The match started with JTG and Scurll in the ring with JTG very much in control.  Both tagged their partners and Shad dominated Hendry however when JTG returned to the ring, Hendry and Scurll put their brains to use as their brawn just wasn't cutting it.  Keeping the ref focused on stopping Shad from entering the ring, they relentlessly double-teamed JTG.  Eventually JTG was able to make the tag and Shad took both men down with clotheslines and looked to put Hendry away with a side suplex, however Scurll hit Shad with his umbrella and suddenly Hendry had the pin.  An unpopular end but to the match, but what a display from Crime Time who left the ring area to a chant of "Please come back".

The penultimate match was a Women's Triple Threat Match between Viper, Sammii Jayne and Debbie Sharpe, who replaced the Portuguese wrestler Shanna.  It was apparent from the start that Sharpe and Sammii Jayne would work together against Viper, however Viper would not go down easily and with the crowd firmly behind her, she used her strength and power to stave off the attacks, before Sammii Jayne turned on Sharpe, forcing Viper to make the save.  Sharpe and Sammii Jayne again attacked Viper, this time with Sharpe looking to make a pin.  Sammii Jayne stopped this before a shoving match ensued between them, allowing Viper to take the upper hand, splashing both girls in the corner.  Sharpe decided enough was enough and left the ring and while Sammii Jayne watched her walk away, Viper struck with the Viper Bomb and took the win.

Finally it was time for the main event, pitting Mike Mondo against "Iron Man" Joe Coffey.  What an incredible match this was.  Starting off with a series of wristlocks and headlocks, Mondo left the ring to regroup and was standing directly in front of me as Coffey looked to dive on him through the ropes.  As we braced our feet against the railing for the impact, Mondo quickly moved to the side and Coffey aborted the dive (and my feet are very grateful).  Returning to the ring, Mondo engaged Coffey in a test of strength (peanuts) which he appeared to be winning but Coffey quickly reversed it and took control of the match.  Coffey focused his attention on the left knee of Mondo and after a suplex the action stopped.  With Mondo clutching his knee, medics arrived in the ring and helped Mondo from the ring, carrying him backstage.  With the crowd wondering what had happened, promotor Alan Smith came to ringside and spoke to a confused Coffey before they headed toward the curtain....only for Mondo to attack Coffey, using the element of surprise to run him back into the ring and take the advantage.  He then threw Coffey to the floor, before ramming him full force into several of the guardrails, the final time actually causing them to buckle with the force.  The action returned to the ring again, with Coffey recovering and taking the advantage, he swung Mondo around the ring before both men collapsed, Mondo rolled out of the ring and Coffey dived on him through the ropes.  Mondo crawled around the ring before heading out into the crowd - Coffey followed and they continued their battle with suplexes on the solid floor before returning to the ring to finish out the match.   Mondo continued to battle but the night belonged to Joe Coffey, who got the pinfall after a huge splash in the corner knocked the last bit of fight out of Mondo.  An outstanding performance from both men, who shook hands at the end of the match.

With such an incredible card and amazing displays from everyone involved, it was difficult to pick my Match of the Night.  After a lot of deliberating, I finally decided that the Mondo/Coffey match gets that accolade, but the Damo/Rampage match ran a very close second!

Discovery Wrestling put on an absolutely amazing debut show and are planning their second show for March 2015.  Make sure to like their Facebook page to keep up to date with future developments.

Review: BCW Homecoming

Friday 29 August 2014

Travelling through to the West for shows on a Friday is a nightmare and this was no exception. The traffic was a nightmare from the start, with an accident and a breakdown on the Bypass then slow moving traffic on the M8 and frequent heavy downpours reducing visibility, it took forever to arrive in Kilmarnock.  We had front row seats booked which gave early entry to the venue at 5pm. We didn't actually arrive until 5.10pm but things were running a wee bit late and the doors opened a few minutes after we arrived and just before another heavy downpour!

Photo by David J Wilson

First up was a wee meet and greet with Drew Galloway (aka Drew McIntyre) who would be competing in his first match in Scotland since his release from WWE - the reason for the show being called Homecoming.  I think due to the slight delay and in order to keep the rest of the night on time, there was no "photo op using your own camera" at the meet and greet but there would be photos taken by David Wilson during the interval at a cost of £15.  Rob and I both had special event posters signed and also met Joel Redman from WWE NXT who signed Rob's book and had a pic taken with him.  We got our BCW shirts and Rob got a very nice Drew Galloway one.

After all the front and second row ticket holders were seated, there was a special pre-show bonus match featuring Tommy Marx and Aaron Echo against Lou King Sharp and Switch. I have to admit to being a little bit disappointed with this match - I am used to seeing Tommy Marx and Lou King Sharp flying around the ring and struggling to get pictures that are not blurred but the match seemed to lack energy.  This may have been due to the slower pace of Echo and Switch.  Marx and Echo took the win after Echo delivered a powerbomb on Sharp then scored the pin.  Although a decent warm-up match and good experience for the young guys, I feel that it would have been totally out of place as part of the main card.

The main show started with BCW owner Graham McKay coming out to the ring to announce that Kilmarnock Grand Hall had never sold out for a wrestling show, even back in the days of World of Sport, but that night, for the first time ever, BCW had done it - the Homecoming show was sold out!  He also announced that Galloway would be back for the annual No Blood,  No Sympathy double header on 5 and 6 December and that also appearing would be Chavo Guerrero, Hardcore Holly and Paul London - take my money now!!!!

The first match of the night was for the BCW Heavyweight title between champion Kid Fite and Davey Blaze.  This was a bit of a surprise as usually the title matches are the main event (or at least first half main event) and not show openers.  These guys faced each other in East Kilbride back in June and that match was an absolute belter....and this one was just as good.  With Blaze determined to take the gold and Fite just as determined to keep it, they both pulled out all the stops.  Fite took an early advantage but no matter what he threw at Blaze, Davey just kept coming back at him and the crowd let him hear their appreciation.  There were some cracking moves and a belter of a double clothesline that threatened to decapitate both men!  While Blaze did have a couple of pin attempts, it was not to be his night and eventually Fite hit the challenger with a DDT and took the win to stay champion.

Next up was Red Lightning v Joe Coffey.  I am really liking Joe Coffey more and more every time I see him and, as much as I love to hate Red Lightning, I really had to feel sorry for him - the amount of punishment he took was incredible.  He was suplexed, bulldogged, swung around several times before being put in a Boston crab, took two massive corner splashes which actually moved the ring a good couple of inches from the walkway - I have the photo to prove it!!  Even his attempt to block Coffey's discus clothesline by kicking his arm went against him, Coffey just spun round and used his other arm instead.  There was a small period where Lightning did get the upper hand but it didn't last very long and once Coffey gets the momentum going, he is exceptionally hard to beat and he proved it here once again - Coffey wins by pinfall.

The next match up pitted Jack Jester against Joel Redman.  With Redman waiting in the ring, Jester burst through the barriers into the crowd, terrorising the kids who had been standing against said barriers jeering him just seconds before.  Once back at ringside, Redman was quick to point out the large corkscrew in Jester's hand and demanded the referee take possession of the offending item before Jester entered the ring.  The match very quickly spilled out to ringside, with faces being smacked off the barriers before Jester pushed Redman into the ring then hit him with a legdrop on the apron right in front of me.  Back on his feet, Redman then grabbed Jester, who had climbed onto the apron to the front, and suplexed him into the ring.  This match went back and forth and with Angel Wings from Jester and superkicks from Redman both scoring near pins this could have been either man's match.  Finally, with Redman standing on the top rope, Jester pushed the referee into the ropes, Redman gets "crotched" and Jester finishes him off with the tombstone and takes the three count.  An absolute belter, this was a close contender for my match of the night.

The first half main event was a mixed tag team match with "Bad Boy" Liam Thomson & Carmel Jacob up against Grado & Kay Lee Ray.  As always, Grado received a rapturous welcome from the crowd which Thomson and Jacob did not appreciate.  With Grado pulling out his usual comedy antics, Thomson decided to get in on the act, attempting to pull off one of Grado's comic stunts of sitting on your opponents back and slapping their ass as if riding a horse.  Jacob was not impressed and got into the ring, screaming at her partner and asking what the hell he was doing.  Thomson's attempt to explain ended up with Jacob sitting on Grado, only for Grado to slide out, ending up with Grado astride Jacob and Ray astride Thomson.  Then followed another comedy skit where Grado and Ray are chasing their opponents around the ring only for Grado to tire out and end up being chased.  The match ended in a win for Grado and Ray when Grado hit Thomson with a "wee boot" and Ray followed up with a Swanton before they both piled onto Thomson for the three count.

As Grado and Kay Lee Ray are doing their celebratory dance in the ring, Johnny Moss appears, attacks Grado and holding Kay Lee Ray by the hair, demands to be given a decent match and who should appear to save Kay Lee - Drew Galloway!  After dealing with Mossy, Galloway grabs a microphone and challenges Moss to a match.  Moss demands that the match be for Galloway's Evolve Championship. Galloway agrees - main event set!!



The second half started with a Tag Team title match between champions Just Uz (BT Gunn & Stevie Xavier) and The Models (Joey Hayes & Danny Hope).  I have only ever seen Hayes in singles competition and never seen Hope before but I have to say they work really well as a team.  I make no secret of the fact that I think Just Uz are amazing as a tag team and really need more teams of a similar calibre to compete against.  The Models definitely fill this void (although I still think the Just Uz/Hubba Bubba Lucha match in April was the best tag match I have ever seen)  Anyway this match was non-stop from start to finish and looked like their may be new champions when The Models managed to isolate Xavier and give him a hell of a beating.  Xavier managed to tag BT Gunn and the match ended after Gunn hoisted Hayes onto his shoulders, Xavier launched from the top turnbuckle clean over his tag partner to take out Hope who was about to attack from behind, leaving Gunn to finish off Hayes and score the pinfall to retain the titles.

Next, another title on the line, this time the BCW Openweight Title with champion Noam Dar defending against Kenny Williams.  Williams just gets better every time I see him and this match was another stormer.  Dar took an early advantage, knocking Williams from the ring and into the barriers right in front of me.  Back in the ring he then hit Williams with the most stunning dropkick.  Williams never gives up and fought back and after trading blows, began to gain momentum, scoring a couple of near falls himself before Dar tried to use the referee as a shield.  As Williams continued his assault, Dar suddenly swept the leg and a couple of cracking kicks later, Williams is pinned for the three count.  Dar leaves the ring still champion but Williams won our hearts.

Finally, the main event and quite obviously Match of the Night, Drew Galloway faced Johnny Moss for the Evolve Championship. OMG - how on earth can I describe this match in any way that does it justice? Actually I can't! It was one of those matches you just had to see to believe.  I'd never seen Galloway in action before - I don't watch WWE - all I can say is WOW!!!!  After being clotheslined out of the ring, Mossy looked to be leaving, only for Galloway to catch up with him on the walkway for a slugfest before backdropping Mossy back into the ring.  Slamming Galloway into the turnbuckles, Moss takes the upper hand but Galloway keeps fighting.  He produced an amazing armdrag from the top rope on Moss and after several near pins from both, Galloway hits the Futureshock and scores the pinfall.  The crowd go wild!

With the match over and Galloway celebrating, Kid Fite appears and attacks him with a steel chair before grabbing the microphone to let the crowd know he is not happy at being moved from a main event slot to opening the show because Galloway has returned.  Next Charles Boddington, who is Kid Fite's manager in other promotions, arrives in the ring with his ever present briefcase....and decks Kid Fite!!  After telling of his happiness to have Drew back, he states that someone else wants to see him - the one and only Lionheart, the very man Galloway faced in his last match in BCW before leaving to join WWE.  And it looks like we will be seeing these guys face off in the ring at some point in 2015, once Lionheart is medically cleared to wrestle after his neck injury.

Finally, the entire roster came out to the ring with a case of beer and toasted the return of Galloway, with the obvious exception of  Mossy and Kid Fite, however one other member did not join in the celebrations, Jack Jester.  When he did finally come to ringside, he glared at the scene before him, before spitting in the face of Galloway and leaving again.  I foresee one hell of a match in the near future between these two!


We purchased a copy of the official programme and having a read through it, we noticed there had been a few changes to the original card.  Having originally advertised both Joel Redman and Martin Stone to appear, Stone was nowhere to be seen and his absence was not mentioned or explained.  This obviously led to the changes to the match-ups in the programme of Moss v Redman, Stone v Red Lightning and Coffey v Jester, however in my opinion, the changes worked out for the best and this show now ranks as Number 1 on my list of best shows attended, beating the amazing April show featuring Fergal Devitt.

BCW's next show is in East Kilbride on 20 September and tickets are on sale now.  We unfortunately will miss this show due to already having an event on the same date, but I am so looking forward to the No Blood, No Sympathy double header (tickets for these shows go on sale 1 October).

For information on BCW's future events and tickets, check out their Facebook page or website