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

Friday 5 December 2014

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Review: SWE Uprising

Saturday 25 October 2014

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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