Review: PWE 4th Anniversary Show "It's Yer Dar"

Another cracking wee review written by the lovely Claire Allan.  Agree wholeheartedly with everything she has written, especially Match of the Night!

Saturday 8th August, Citadel Leisure Centre, Ayr

I have been waiting months for this show, excited was a massive understatement for this!  I was bouncing off the walls all morning, nothing could contain me.

For shows, the banter starts from the queue outside.  Meeting up with Julie, Rob and Janet is always a pleasure.

The difference for this show, I was 2nd row instead of my normal front row but that won't stop me being noisy.

The silver and platinum ticket holders always get the treat of a bonus match, usually this is stars that have performed in front of crowds before but are not as well known as the ones on the main roster.  This time Adrian decided to use some of students from GPWA, to give them some experience of performing in front of die-hard fans.  This was well received.

BONUS MATCH

AUSTIN OSIRIS & KYLE KHAOS VS CS ROSE & FLEX HUNTER

GUEST REFEREE RED LIGHTNING

I was really impressed with the technical abilities of the students, apart from some mishaps with slips off the ropes.  All credit to the coaches.  Rose and Hunter definitely had the power over their smaller opponents but once Osiris and Khaos got going and started using aerial attacks, they held the fans attention.  After a well fought battle Osiris and Khaos secured the win.  It was good to hear the fans getting behind the youngsters and I hope it has done a lot for their confidence.

(Confession: I did get distracted by someone entering the building, you may have had a hoodie on but I know those legs anywhere!)

After this match, it was time to let the general ticket holders in and OMG, they just kept coming and coming.  It felt like an eternity!! Finally all the 729 fans were in the building and the main show got underway 45 minutes late. 

As MC Simon Cassidy was about to get things started, out comes Red Lightning.  He makes his feelings clear that he packed his ring attire as he was wanting a match as well as refereeing the bonus match!  He also said he was miffed that he gets overlooked for these events and wanted answers from Lionheart.  Lionheart honours Red's wish and comes to ringside.  He tells Red that he has learned a few truths since running these shows but two things stand out in this business and they are 1) Sometimes you have to do a deal with the devil and 2) The card is subject to change.......

RED LIGHTNING VS CHRIS RENFREW

The crowd erupted as Chris Renfrew made his presence felt, the amount NAK fans in the crowd was immense.  As soon as Renfrew stepped into the ring he took it to Red Lightning.  Both men have good technical ability but they are also two brilliant brawlers.  It was obvious from the start that this was Renfrew's fight, not taking anything away from Red Lightning but Renfrew is an animal!  Renfrew pinned Red in the centre of the ring.  Hopefully he has learned his lesson that you can always get what you wish for but it can be your worst nightmare!

KID FITE, TJ RAGE & DAVEY BLAZE W/CHARLES BODDINGTON VS LOU KING SHARP

TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH

TJ Rage, Davey Blaze and Charles Boddington come to the ring, closely followed by the Tag Team Champ, Lou King Sharp.  Boddington takes the mic and announces that he felt sorry for Sharp, so he decided to give Kid Fite the night off.  Lionheart comes to ringside and tells Lou that he needs to screw the nut as he isn't going to continue to save his backside. Lionheart then turns to Lou's opponents and says he thought they would pull a stunt like this, Boddington starts to say that Lionheart cannot get involved with the match but he is cut off by the boss who says he knows that he cannot get involved but he does have someone backstage that has a score to settle with Blaze n Rage and cannot wait to get in the ring.....lights go out and the video plays......IT IS THE RETURN OF KRIS TRAVIS!. The crowd went ballistic!

Now a slight deviation from the wrestling....As many people know Kris was diagnosed with stomach cancer in the middle of 2014, prior to this he started missing events due to what he thought was a stomach ulcer.  I sent him a Get Well Soon card but in hindsight, I would have sent a different design!  In September, he announced that it was stomach cancer and that he already had part of his stomach removed and that he was going to require chemotherapy.  The support he was given from colleagues within the wrestling profession and fans was phenomenal.  Shows were made in his honour, friends and fans donated on his behalf, amazing.  After his chemotherapy, Kris got back in the gym and started raising money for Cavendish Cancer Care.  He has been doing charity football matches (and planning to do more?) and helping raise more money for them any which way he can.

I make no secret that I have the utmost respect for him and do care about him (even though he probably thinks I am a mad woman!).  I have known Trav for about 3 years and always get him the same way, very respectful to fans, willing to sign autographs and pose for photographs.  He's friendly and not only is he good looking on the outside but has a beautiful heart on the inside, in my experience this is a rarity.  He is the perfect role model for kids, an inspiration to adults and a true ambassador for what he believes in.

Back to the wrestling.....

BLAZE & RAGE VS LOU KING SHARP & KRIS TRAVIS

For me, this was Match of the Night.  Not because it contained Kris Travis.  It was truly awesome, Kris proved that even after nearly a year out of the ring, he had not lost his ability and was still capable of kicking butt!  Blaze & Rage did not make it easy for them.  Kris then tagged in Lou, who got a good few hits in but the tide turned, due to their power Lou struggled against the bigger men, on one or two occasions he had the chance to tag Kris back in but attempted to go for glory but to no avail. Kris eventually got back in the ring and showed exactly how to do it!  After an amazing fight the Champ retained after the opponents were pinned.

1ST HALF MAIN EVENT

BIG DAMO VS SAMOA JOE

What a first half main event this was, two of the biggest guys I have seen in a ring.  As normal, most of the fans were on the side of the 'Samoan Submission Machine' but my group were firmly on the side of the 'Beast of Belfast' which made the chanting fight very interesting, as my group are some of the loudest fans about!  The two men were equals in the ring in both power and ability.  In the beginning, nothing could separate them.  The fight went on the outside and they got into a chopfest.  Damo is a hard hitter but even I felt everyone of Joe's as they echoed around the Citadel.  After more action in the ring, Joe got the win after making Big Damo submit, showing why he is a Submission Machine!

DREW GALLOWAY VS IESTYN REES

This was definitely a match for the ladies!  Two very handsome men.  As soon as both men were in the ring, you could tell there is a bit of history between them especially after Iestyn blames Drew for him losing the Elite Rumble.  This was my third time seeing Iestyn Rees and have been quite impressed, he has a great ring presence and can hold the crowd’s attention.  Drew Galloway has similar qualities but had the backing from his hometown crowd.  After some in ring action, Drew decides he should take Iestyn on a grand tour of the Citadel, introducing him to fans, walls and doors!  Once back at the ring, Iestyn turned the tables and threatened get his own back with a couple of painful chops against the guard rail.  Eventually Drew managed to pin Iestyn, after a hard fought battle. 

WOLFGANG & KENNY WILLIAMS VS THE COFFEYS

This was another match I was interested in.  In the last couple of shows, there has been some cracks showing between the two brothers, would it finally break tonight?  The fans were split equally, again the chant wars began, even overheard a couple of girls arguing who was the better looking Coffey brother! (and put my tuppence worth in).  Once the match began it was Mark vs Kenny, Mark had the upperhand in this contest then tagged in Joe.  At this point the match was swinging back and forth, so much so Joe even took Kenny for a swing!  Once Kenny & Wolfie took control of the match, Joe did not stand a chance. There was fantastic chemistry on the team of Wolfie & Kenny.  Nearer the end of the match, Joe managed to escape the clutches of his opponents but instead of accepting his tag, Mark jumped from the apron which in turn was the main reason for Joe being pinned and Wolfgang & Kenny being winners.  Joe remained in the ring for a few moments, stunned by what his brother had done.  Mark came back out and Joe demanded answers!  Mark did not explain himself but showed some cowardice by slapping his brother then running away.  I think it is jealousy on Mark's part as it was clear the crowd favoured Joe.

MAIN EVENT

NOAM DAR VS GRADO

This was the most anticipated match of the night, the atmosphere was electric, the hall was buzzing.  Keeping in mind, these two are the best of friends away from the ring and have travelled the world together.  The challenger came to the ring in his usual style, you could see the focus in his eyes, he wants the title and I was praying he would get it. Next out came the champion, accompanied by a young lady singing his entrance music.  Usually in a Grado match there are some comedy moments but tonight it was different, he wanted to retain the title just as much as Noam wanted the win.  No-one could get the upperhand, the bad thing about fighting your friend is they know your style like the back of their hand, they know what moves you are going to do!  It was a great match thus far!!  Unfortunately, near the end poor Eddie (the ref) took a hard knock and was out cold!  Noam managed to get the anklelock on which had Grado tapping but there was no official to make the call.  Noam went over to try to revive Eddie, when he turned round he got caught by 'The Wee Boot' and was pinned.  Again, nobody to make the call.  Enter Iestyn Rees, who believes he should have been in this match instead of Noam, starts to beat up both Noam and Grado.  Drew Galloway makes the save.  This causes Blaze & Rage with Boddington to make their presence known and help Iestyn.  Samoa Joe then comes in and cleans house with the bad guys!  He even manages to cause that 'baldy midget' Charles Boddington some pain!  The match ends in a no contest.  Drew, Joe, Noam and Grado then have a little dance in the ring.  Personally, I would have preferred the match to continue until there was an outright winner but the time was against this match.

All in all it was an excellent show, the best Pro Wrestling Elite show so far.  Adrian McCallum deserves a lot of plaudits for putting on these shows on, they are definitely getting better each time......you may need to start looking for a bigger venue soon!

Wishing Pro Wrestling Elite all the best for the next show on 26th September at Ayr Town Hall, the roof will be raised! Unfortunately I will not be there due to family commitments!

PS If you want to donate to Cavendish Cancer Care, you can text TRAV01 followed by either £5 or £10 to 70070.  Your donations will be much appreciated.

Until next time......

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 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

Review: BCW Live in East Kilbride

Friday 27 June 2014

After the last BCW show in April, I didn't know how they could top it.  Well maybe this time they didn't but they came close...and the next show....well I will get to that at the end....

The first match of the night was Switch against Tommy Marx.  Switch managed to reduce a young girl at ringside to tears during his entrance when he suddenly turned to face her and shouted boo!  Tommy Marx got a great reception from the crowd throughout the match but it was Switch who dominated most of the match.  Despite pulling off some great moves, Marx was not able to overcome the size and strength advantage and underhand tactics from Switch, who eventually took the win.

Next up was Red Lightning v El Technico.  Red Lighting took the microphone and starting whinging about hurting his shoulder at the last event and that the crowd were unsympathetic before threatening to go “El Technico” on El Technico, whose mask still reminds me of the Predator movies.  Obviously the masked man did not take kindly to this and went straight for the shoulder of Lightning, before Lightning escaped to the ringside area to chants of “chicken”.  Once back in the ring, Lightning managed to gain some momentum and began working on the leg of El Technico in an attempt to keep the big guy grounded, but this was not successful and it was El Technico who scored the pinfall.

The next match was a very close contender for Match of the Night – “Bad Boy” Liam Thomson v Joe Coffey.  Coffey is becoming one of my favourite wrestlers and I have developed a grudging respect for Thomson after his recent match with Uhaa Nation at PWE and this match did not disappoint.  Their chops echoed around the hall, the slams into the corners moved the ring and neither man held back in their bid to win this match.  It was action packed from start to finish.  With the advantage going back and forth and both scoring near falls, it really was too close to call.  Both pulled out their usual finishing moves, but Coffey kicked out of the pin and Thomson got to the ropes breaking Coffey's Boston Crab hold.  Finally, Coffey delivered a devastating clothesline on Thomson and pinned him for the 3 count to the delight of the crowd.  This really was an amazing match and Rob even commented that he could not believe this was NOT the first half main event!! A video showing the climax of the match is on the Loudmouth Facebook page and is most definitely worth a wee look!

The first half main event pitted fan favourite Grado against Noam Dar for the Openweight Championship.  This match was hysterical from the start and I have to admit that I probably laughed more during this match than at most comedy movies!   It would appear that Grado has toned up recently and while still retaining his “Chubby Chancer” character, seems to be working on both his physique and his wrestling ability.  Anyway, rather than tell you about the match, why not watch the entire match for yourself!

First up after the interval was my favourite, Jack Jester against Kenny Williams.  Jester’s entrance included the BCW debut of his lizard, Gallus (there’s a wee video clip on the Loudmouth Facebook page) and now Rob is pestering me for a pet lizard!  With the majority of the crowd firmly on "Team Kenny", Jester took a lot of abuse from the kids in the audience and spent some time chasing a large group of kids from one side of the stage to the other and managing to reduce another child in the crowd to tears.  Once in the ring, Jester dominated Williams for much of the match, even dumping him in the laps of the ringside crowd before taking him over to introduce Williams face first to the merchandise table.  Back in the ring again, Jester continued his assault, including a legdrop on the ring apron and a suplex.  Williams seemed to gain a little momentum and scored a near pin but Jester caught him off the top turnbuckle, delivering a piledriver and scoring the win.

The next match was supposed to be a tag team title match between Damian O'Connor & T J Rage and Just Uz, however the team of Damo & Rage attacked Stevie Xavier with the belts before the bell had rung and it was declared a no contest with Just Uz still champions.  With Rage and Damo trying to claim the belts in the ring, BT Gunn then said if they wanted a tag match, they could have one as he would take them both on himself.  While Damo and Rage did work well together, they did not have the chemistry Damo shares with his "Britain's Most Wanted" tag team partner Scott Renwick.  The match itself was short but very, very sweet, with Gunn unloading on the two big guys and proving that he is a force to be reckoned with.  Despite the obvious disadvantage, Gunn took it to Rage initially before landing a dropkick on Damo.  He also landed a cracking suicide dive through the ropes onto both his opponents which almost had Damo landing on me!  Back in the ring, Gunn then took some punishment from both guys before finally landing a superkick to the head of Rage and scoring the pin to retain the titles.

Finally, the main event - Kid Fite v Davey Blaze for the BCW Heavyweight title – and this won Match of the Night for me.  This match started in the ring but spilled out into the ringside area, before heading off to the merchandise tables and back again and despite warning Fite that I didn't want him landing on me again, he very nearly did.  It was, in a word, brutal!  Within minutes of the match starting, Blaze was in the ringside area checking his nose wasn't broken, only for Fite to come out and slam him into the ring post.  Back in the ring, Fite kept the advantage, attempting to use a sleeper hold to defeat Blaze but Blaze rallied before his hand could fall for the third time.  The match then spilled out of the ring again and headed over the to the merchandise table, where Blaze had the advantage but Fite was not going down easily, regaining the advantage and driving Blaze into the chairs which had quickly been vacated by the crowd, before grabbing a hoodie from one of the chairs and using it to choke Blaze (upsetting the young owner of said hoodie and causing more tears!).  Back in the ring again, Fite kept the upper hand but it took several attempts before he was able to keep Blaze pinned for the 3 count.  Another fantastic match to end the night's entertainment.



Rob & Leah Owens

Rob & Kasey Owens

After the show, Jester and Grado signed posters in the foyer while Rob got photos taken with Leah and Kasey Owens and got up close and personal with Gallus!

This was a great evening's entertainment with a very noisy crowd, which meant I did not have to work to get them going.  In my opinion, BCW have definitely raised the bar as far as wrestling shows go.

As promised at the beginning of this blog, here is the scoop on the next BCW show - it will be held at Kilmarnock Grand Hall on 29 August and features the first Scottish appearance of Drew Galloway (aka Drew McIntyre) since his release from WWE.  Guaranteed to sell out, tickets go on sale on 10 July so check out BCW's Facebook page to keep up to date with all the information.

Preston City Wrestling SpringSlam Evoque Nightclub, Preston - Review by Claire Davidson

Friday 25^th April

What can I say about this show....it was nothing short of spectacular.  I thought it would be difficult for a show to equal the BCW show of the previous week but there was no fear of that, this was definitely the best show I have EVER seen.
When you are walking through the nightclub and into the room where the wrestling is held, you can feel the electric atmosphere building.  With PCW, it is only the first two rows that are seating and you are allocated seats so if you book tickets as a group, you stay together.  So when I got to my seat, saw that it was plastic and in line with the centre of the ring.....I knew it was going to be a very interesting night...

Just as ring announcer Joanna Rose had come out to announce the first match, she was interrupted by the PCW Champion Joey Hayes.  He gets into the ring and starts saying he does not understand why the fans love Danny Hope so much, this gets the crowd chanting ‘Tassle-tastic’.  He then rants that how he was a good guy just like Danny but what did he get from the fans...nothing but disrespect and boos!  He went on to proclaim that he doesn’t need to wrestle Danny tonight and that he will just stand outside the ring and get counted out so he retains the title.  At this point PCW owner, Steven Fludder, comes out and tells Joey that it will not be that easy and makes the Title Match a lumberjack match!

Martin Kirby vs AR Fox
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this match.  I am a huge fan of Kirby but AR Fox was an unknown entity, I have never seen any of his work, he did not disappoint.  The crowd were definitely split with joint ‘Martin Kirby’,’ARFox’  chants.  In the early stages of the match was going back and forward with Kirby using ‘C’mon ref, he’s pulling my hair!’  Some the high flying moves AR Fox was executing  were totally mind blowing, Kirby gave as good as he got.  After a hugely entertaining match, Kirby pins AR Fox for the win.

Noam Dar vs Steve Corino
A majority of the crowd were behind Noam Dar for the match.  Giving a Noam Dar rendition of ‘No Limits’ and the Imperial March from Star Wars (to which Noam started marching round the ring).  Before the match started, Noam asked who would like to hold his jacket, of course, I had to offer my services for this job but he made me promise to give it back and he tried to get the fans to chant my name but failed miserable!  When the match got start, the size difference between the two was very noticeable and Noam had a little difficulty trying to get his opponent down.  He did manage to land a few cheeky slaps to which Corino called him a cheeky little “monkey”! After a good match in which Noam had a couple of near submissions, Steve Corino pick up the win by pinfall.  Noam was not a happy person after getting beat, he storms out the ring, grabs his jacket off me with a ‘Gie’s ma f****n jacket’ and marches backstage like a petulant child!

Dave Mastiff vs Charlie Garrett I believe this match had come about due to what happened during the rumble at the previous event.  This is the first time I had even heard of Charlie Garrett, not one who has been on my radar!  I must admit when he entered the ring he looked very impressive.  The crowd were very much behind Dave Mastiff for the fight  with the chant ‘You’re our favourite b*****d’!  It was during this match, things started getting scary, on a couple of occasions I made a dash from where I was sitting as Garrett landed where my feet would have been!  The power of Dave Mastiff was unbelievable, it looked like Garrett was running into a brick wall as his shoulder charges made little or no impact on Mastiff.  At one point Mastiff was on the outside of the ring and Garrett tried to baseball slide him but Mastiff trapped him in the ring apron.  Mastiff pins Garrett after giving him the cannonball!

Team Single vs Legion of Boom & Dean Allmark
This match was not announced prior to the night.  Originally it was supposed to be Bubblegum vs Dean Allmark but Bubblegum could not come to the ring without the Tag Champions and other members of Team Single T-Bone and Rampage Brown.  All three men descended upon Dean Allmark but before they could reach him, out came Legion of Boom (Dave Rayne & Chris Masters) making this a six-man tag match.  Legion of Boom are definitely the fans favourite in this match.  At the start, Allmark wanted Bubblegum to face him but he refused and told T-Bone to go in first.  After a few tags from each team, Team Single manage to get the better of Legion of Boom and Allmark by stopping Dave Rayne tagging in any of his partners and takes a beating in their corner with some underhand tactics from Team Single!  Eventually Dave manages to get a second wind when he is up against Bubblegum and manages to tag in his partner which leads to Team Single entering the ring.  After the melee, the team of Legion of Doom and Dean Allmark are victorious.

El Ligero vs Petey Williams
I was really looking forward to this match, El Ligero is becoming one of my favourite wrestlers.  He impresses me more every time I see him and makes me want to see more of him.  In this match, the crowd was split in who to support.  Soon after the crowd were quiet, only the odd shout, which clearly did not take away how good the two stars in the ring.  Both were so equally match throughout, it was a tough one to call.  After a few near falls, Petey hit El Ligero with the Canadian Destroyer to score the win by pin.

Kris Travis vs Prince Fergal Devitt
For me, this was MOTN by far.  I know I could be accused of being biased since I am a massive fan of Kris Travis and even writing this my heart is skipping beats!  First Trav come out to rapturous applause from the crowd....then out comes Devitt with the Punisher bodyart!  Right from the start this is a fast paced match, with both men exchanging blow.  Devitt’s chops would rival BT Gunn’s, if I am being honest, the echoes around the nightclub were immense but I had to spare a thought for the guy on the receiving end of them.  Trav took the upper hand and gave the signal...I ran!! First Devitt comes flying, quickly followed by Trav, chairs went flying along with my bag, jacket and phone, I am glad it is made with sturdy stuff! Next Devitt grabs Trav and tries to Irish Whip him into the wall but Trav is wise to this and runs up the wall and back flips over Devitt...but I thought there was a slight under rotation and Trav was off balance when he landed.  The two men continued to fight around the ring, chairs continued to fly and my heart was constantly in my mouth, scared in case someone got hurt!  Unfortunately there could only be one winner and that went to Prince Fergal Devitt by pin.  This match well and truly deserved the standing ovation and chants of ‘That was Awesome ‘ and ‘One more time’.  I did get a high five from Trav as he left the ring that made my night!

After the match, they brought Jesse McClure and Elizabeth Fludder out to draw the raffle.  Jesse asked who we supported in Storage Hunters.  When we booed Brandori, he asked security to banish us from the building.  I didn’t win anything this time!

MAIN EVENT – LUMBERJACK MATCH
Joey Hayes (Champion) vs Danny Hope
Before the match they brought out the lumberjacks T-Bone, Rampage Brown, Bubblegum, Dave Rayne, Chris Masters, Terry Funk, Big Van Vader and Rikishi.

This was a good match with action in and out the ring.  Team Single was standing right in front of us but I have never seen a bigger chicken than Bubblegum!!!  Hiding behind us at every opportunity, especially when one of the other lumberjacks came near him.  In the ring it was back and forth, Joey was thrown from the ring on the far side but was quickly back in when Masters and Vader started pounding down on him!  I did ask Bubblegum at this point, if anyone comes this way to give me warning so I don’t get injured and was told no because he would be standing behind me!  More toing and froing in the ring with Danny being ejected at our side but as team single go to beat him down, round come all the other lumberjack to save him.  Terry Funk then starts to beat down T-bone then Bubblegum with the latter landing on his backside, Funk also gave Rayne a punch into the bargain.  At this point, I didn’t know where to look...as T-bone had started attacking Terry Funk.  Finally Joey Hayes got the win to retain the title.  Team Single had started to celebrate with him, then the other lumberjacks entered the ring, Vader attacked Joey and whipped him in the corner, this clearly knocked Joey!! The fans started baying for the Rikishi’s stink face which he was glad to give Hayes a taste of! This was followed up by a Vader bomb!  Luckily for Joey he managed to get out of there before any more punishment could be bestowed on him.

After the matched we were entertained by some dancing from Rikishi, Vader, Funk, Masters, Rayne and Hope!

The show was out of this world, not one bad fight amongst the seven of them.  The only thing I could criticise is that there were too many imports but I would highly recommend this company to any wrestling fan out there.


Claire Davidson