Review: Discovery Wrestling Superkick Party

Friday 10 April 2015


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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Review: SWA Battlezone

Saturday 18 October 2014

Our second visit to the Motherwell Concert Hall.  I had bought VIP tickets for this event but after a few recent issues, I was in two minds whether to sell them or go. In the end, I decided I would go....and I am glad I did because it was a great show.

As part of the VIP package, we had a pre-show match featuring Grado and Courtney against Joe Hendry and Debbie Sharpe.  I was actually surprised by this, as pre-show matches are usually an opportunity for trainees to make an impression, but here we had arguably one of the most recognisable faces in Grado and one of the fastest rising stars in the independent scene in Joe Hendry.  The match itself would not have been out of place on the main card with Grado hamming it up as usual and Hendry playing the heel to perfection.  Hendry and Sharpe dominated much of the match, using their underhanded tactics in order to double-team Grado however the fan favourites were victorious after Hendry found himself on the wrong end of moves from both Courtney and Grado in the corner, with Grado getting the pinfall.

Now onto the main show.... Mikey Whiplash was originally scheduled to face John "The Bomb" Graham in a TLC match however with Graham unable to compete, a change to the card had been announced - Whiplash would face Jack Gallagher in a 2 out of 3 falls match.  Having seen these two face each other at Pride, I knew this was going to be an amazing match...and they did not disappoint.  These guys put on an amazing display from the start which literally had the crowd gasping.  There was also some fun when Whiplash spotted Cobra Carr's daughter in the crowd holding up her "Whippy Sucks" sign. At one point Gallagher ended up sitting in the front row holding up the sign, before hiding the sign in the back of his trunks and holding it up once back in the ring.  This only made Whiplash more determined to beat Gallagher and it was Whiplash who scored the first fall.  Without any hesitation he tried for the second fall several times unsuccessfully.  Gallagher fought back, pulling off some incredible moves and took the second fall before locking in a submission and Whiplash tapped out.  An amazing start to the night and my Match of the Night by a mile!  I really hope to see video footage of this soon.

The next match was Robbie Solar v John Gresham who had their work cut out for them following such an incredible opening match, however they definitely did not disappoint.  Although evenly matched in height, speed and agility, Gresham appeared to have a strength advantage over Solar.  This was the first time I had seen Gresham and I hope I have an opportunity to witness him in action again soon.  This was a fast paced match with Gresham using his combination of power and agility to punish the smaller built Solar, leaving him covered in welts and handprints.  Solar, however, is a pocket rocket himself and kept coming back at Gresham,  hitting him with a dropkick to the back before rolling him up to score the pinfall.

Next up was Rampage Brown who had issued an open challenge which was answered by "Flyin" Ryan Griffin, who is either extremely brave or totally crazy.  Brown did not hold back, using his size and strength advantage from the beginning.  After taking a boot to the face and being slammed face first into the turnbuckles, Griffin looked to be done before he had even started but despite taking a serious amount of punishment, he did manage to fight his way back into the match, almost scoring the win after a cracking crossbody from the turnbuckle knocked the big man to the canvas.  The victory was not to be however and Rampage quickly rallied, delivering another boot to the face of Griffin, following it with a devastating piledriver before covering him for the three count.

After a short interval, the action continued with SWA Zero One Heavyweight Champion Joe Coffey defending his title against Doug Williams.  This was a belter and could easily have gone either way with both men showing amazing strength and agility.  There were near falls for both men but this match would not end based on the abilities of these two amazing athletes.  As they fought, the referee got caught and was knocked out.  Coffey swung Williams around the ring before turning him over into a Boston Crab and while Williams tapped out, the referee was unable to acknowledge it.  Coffey released the hold and attempted to rouse the referee when Jackie Polo appeared, grabbing the title belt and threatening to hit Coffey with it.  Then Mark Coffey appeared and grabbed the belt from Polo, apparently to make the save, before turning and nailing his brother with it to the shock of the crowd!  With the referee recovering, Polo and Mark Coffey stood at ringside as Williams then covered Coffey for the three count to become the new Heavyweight champion.  Polo and Mark Coffey re-entered the ring to help the new champ celebrate before taking off backstage as a very angry Joe Coffey recovered.

The penultimate match of the night saw Sammii Jayne face Viper with Fiona Fraser as the special guest referee.  This was more of a handicap match as it became apparent early on that Fraser had a problem with Viper, with any decision made being in favour of Sammii Jayne.  With several near falls from both girls, Viper finally had Sammii Jayne well and truly beaten and went for the pinfall once again.  This time when Fraser reached two, she stopped and refused to finish the count.    As Viper and Fraser faced off, Sammii Jayne took the advantage, rolling Viper up for Fraser to make a fast 3 count and declare Sammii Jayne the winner.  On a side note, during this match Sammii Jayne's hair weave came out...and I think she really suits the natural shorter look.

After another short interval, it was time for the 40 man Battlezone match to determine the No 1 contender to the SWA Zero One Heavyweight title.  Starting with two men in the ring, they would be joined every 60 seconds by another competitor.  First out was Mark Coffey, who then watched the entrance for his first opponent Grado, who instead made his entrance through the crowd dressed in a Motherwell FC mascot outfit.  As Christopher Saynt entered, Grado was eliminated. Entrant number 5 was Jackie Polo and he immediately teamed with Coffey in order to eliminate those in the ring and any newcomers, sitting on chairs they brought into the ring,,,,until entrant number 10 Joe Coffey appeared.  Mark slipped under the ropes and ran backstage, quickly followed by Joe, who had just eliminated Jackie Polo, leaving the ring empty for the arrival of entrant 11, Mr News.  Next out was Glen Dunbar, followed by his tag partner Alex Cavanaugh.  They double-teamed Mr News until the arrival of Randy Valentine.  These four pretty much fought each other the entire time they were in the match and continued it even after they were eliminated just after the arrival of entrant 20 Adam Carrell.  The Coffey Brothers made a brief reappearance in the ring, arriving through the crowd before disappearing out the other side again.  Entrant 24 was big Damo who immediately began to clean house and also managed to stand on the chest of Dickie Divers before dropping a senton on him.

Shortly after  Rampage Brown entered at No 40, only John Gresham (39) Lewis Girvan (37), Jack Gallagher (34), Mikey Whiplash (31) and Damo (24) remained.  While Gallagher and Whiplash continued their earlier battle, Gresham and Girvan were soon eliminated, followed by Damo at the hands of Rampage Brown.  With both Brown and Whiplash's attention on him, the odds were not in Gallagher's favour but he somehow pulled off the impossible by first eliminating Whiplash then Brown to win the Battlezone match and become the number one contender.  The crowd began to chant asking "where's the Coffeys" as they had never officially been eliminated and it was expected that they would reappear, however this did not happen and Gallagher was officially announced as the winner.


After the show there was a meet and greet with some of the wrestlers for VIP ticket holders but Rob and I had already met all of them in the past, so we rolled up our sleeves and assisted with packing up the ring instead!

There was an "Aftermath" show in Paisley on Friday 24th but we were unable to attend due to previous plans.  Information on all future SWA events can be found on their Facebook page.

Review: SWE Breaking Backs

Friday 11 July 2014

So we have missed the last couple of SWE events in Dundee due to date clashes so we were really looking forward to this show in Cupar.  After a morning of general mayhem and then panic when 4 ambulances zoomed past us on the way to the Forth Road Bridge, we arrived in Cupar.  Unfortunately our plans to grab a bite before the show were scuppered when we found that eateries in Cupar generally close at 2pm after lunch and don't reopen until around 5-5.30pm for dinner....bit of a downer when you arrive in town just after 3pm!!  Thankfully they had a Greggs so we made do with some pizza slices and steak bakes.

Arriving at the venue, we met up with some of our friends from Dundee and had a bit of a catch up which was really nice.  Once we knew we were safe from parking restrictions, we headed to the venue and decided to head inside and bumped into Charles Riddell, co-owner of SWE and asked if it was okay to wait inside where it was cooler and where would the ticket desk be, only to be told that I had won tickets to the event in a competition I had entered with Fighting Spirit Magazine - only the mag hadn't actually notified me!  I was well chuffed and having a little extra cash meant I could get our tickets for both Hellbound and Hell For Lycra in August!

Cupar Corn Exchange was a cracking wee venue for the show with a stage area which the wrestlers used for the entrance and plenty of room for seating.  It was a shame that more people didn't come along but the very small crowd (around 30 people) made plenty of noise.  I may or may not have instigated many of the chants but it was great that everyone joined in and there were a great wee group of kids who really got into it - potentional loudmouths of the future!  Our Ring Announcer for the night was the lovely Amy Anderson, who did a great job!

The first match of the night was Debbie Sharpe v Sammii Jayne.  Bearing in mind we haven't been to SWE since the end of April, there were a lot of changes...and mostly for the good.  Sharpe came to the ring first, having ditched her bouncy Gina G entrance music, using that of her other half, Martyn Stallyon.  She has also ditched her goody, goody persona and had a permanent scowl on her face (when I told her to watch for the wind changing cos it might stay that way, she asked me if that was what happened to me - I like heel Debbie!)  Next Sammii Jayne came bouncing out to the ring, smiling and greeting the crowd but when it came to the action, the sweet act was gone and she was as good, if not better, than heel Sammii.  Within a minute of the bell, the action had already spilled out of the ring.  Sammii then dumped Debbie over the barriers before climbing over herself, proceeding to smack Debbie into everything in sight, chairs, the walls and of course the merchandise table, before getting onto said table and launching herself at Debbie.  The action then returned to the ring where both girls gave as good as they got before Sammii Jayne got the pin, leaving Debbie looking stunned, then angry.  This was probably the best match I have seen between these two girls and while it seemed somewhat wrong to have Sammii Jayne as a face, she did not dumb down her in-ring abilities and seemed almost more vicious as a face than she did as a heel.

Next up was a tag team match featuring two members of the Trident against Claymore and Calum McMinn, now known as Felix Fortune.  It seems that since my last visit the Trident have been given names and tonight featured "the big dour faced one" now known as MDK (I think this is a reference to the movie Demolition Man) and "450" who I think they said was called Steven Myles.  The match started with the Trident attacking Claymore and Fortune as they climbed the ropes to greet the crowd during their entrance and this could have been a really good match, however there were a few really botched moves when it was impossible to suspend disbelief and I just had to laugh (sorry guys but I have to be honest with my opinions).  Unfortunately, for me, those moments totally overshadowed the really good parts of the match.  Fortune put in a relatively good showing in the early part of the match, but when the momentum turned and a desperate Fortune tagged in Claymore, Trident had managed to distract the referee who refused to accept the tag had been made.  Claymore did eventually get a tag in and cleared house before Fortune took over and momentum swung again in the Trident's favour, Fortune was unable to kick out after taking a 450 splash and the win went to The Trident.

With the next match I was again faced with a character change - Joe Hendry had turned heel.  His opponent, Martyn Stallyon was accompanied to the ring by Debbie Sharpe, however before the match started Stallyon sent Debbie backstage (I think this may be because she has been costing him wins by distracting him).  This was a cracker of a match. Hendry initially seemed reluctant to stay in the ring and received the obligatory "Chicken" chant but then took the upper hand in the early part of the match. Stallyon came back at him and they continued to trade blows and holds throughout the match.  There were near pins on both sides and if looks could kill I would have dropped dead from the one Hendry gave me after I sang "Joe Hendry, Total Zero"!  The match ended with Stallyon splashing Hendry from the top rope and securing the pinfall.  Enter Debbie Sharpe, wearing bright red lipstick, who gets into the ring and congratulates her man by planting a smacker on his lips, only to quickly drop to her knees and plant one on the cheek of the still prone Hendry while her man's back was turned.  Loving this Stallyon/Sharpe storyline and yes, I definitely like Debbie better as a heel than a face!

Chaz Phoenix then came out to the ring and addressed his upcoming steel cage match with Steven Magners at Hell For Lycra.  When I started chanting "We want Magners", Chaz yelled that Magners wasn't even here and that I should shut up.  Chaz was upset that someone he used to call a friend would stab him in the back but the crowd loved him - so I told him I was playing the world's smallest violin for him.  He didn't seem to appreciate it and yelled "shut up, you ugly cretin" - I'll give you this Chaz, I have been called a lot of things but that was the first time I have been called a cretin.  He then continued to talk about how once he got Magners in the cage he was going to destroy him and that he didn't care if a single person turned up to watch, he would do it anyway before deciding that we did not deserve his presence, throwing down the microphone and storming out of the ring.

During the Hendry/Stallyon match, Jam O'Malley & Euan Mackie entered the hall and sat quietly at ringside with a bag full of old posters and flyers.  During the interval it became apparent that they had been writing messages on the back of the posters and flyers and went round the hall leaving them on seats, before taking to the announcers table which had been vacated by Randy Valentine and The Grue for the break.

First up after the interval was Jason "The Jackal" Costello v LJT.  As usual, there were chants of "potato" greeting the arrival of Costello, who was wearing trunks with what looked more like a fox than a jackal on them.  I, of course, felt it my duty to point out this fact to him but, like Chaz earlier, I don't think he appreciated it!  LJT got the jump on Costello early on, but Costello soon took the upper hand, often resorting to his usual underhanded tactics.  With the crowd firmly behind LJT, the match continued to swing back and forth.  With LJT looking like winning and being just a fraction of a second short of scoring the win, Costello managed to use LJT's own momentum to roll him up for the pinfall.

Euan Mackie and Jam O'Malley then took to the ring to address recent events between Mackie and Bravehart.  After Mackie spoke about being promised a title shot that didn't happen, losing his group "The Z List" and how Bravehart's attitude had changed, he started a "Low Must Go" chant and started throwing flyers from the ring.  Jam then took the microphone and spoke about how he was robbed of the Future Division championship when Bravehart overturned the referee's decision but did nothing regarding the outside interference.  They then sat in the ring until Bravehart appeared to face them.  After stating there would not be a career v career match as Bravehart was going nowhere, he confirmed he would face Mackie at Hell For Lycra, even if he was not fit to wrestle and could end up in hospital, because Mackie was worth it.  He then turned his attention to Jam O'Malley, telling him that as a current SWE employee, he must show his loyalty by removing Mackie from the premises or he would be sacked on the spot.  After about 30 seconds of shaking his head and saying "I need this job" O'Malley turned to Bravehart and gave a gesture that indicated he would not be carrying out his orders before he and Mackie left the hall.

The main event pitted SWE Heavyweight champion Ian Ambrose against Mr News for the title and was my pick for Match of the Night.  Ambrose revelled in the jeers from the crowd as much as Mr News did in the cheers.  News quickly took the fight to Ambrose and when outside of the ring he even took requests, slamming Ambrose face first into the barrier right in front of me after I asked him to!!  This ended up being an action packed match with both guys putting it all out there and the momentum swung back and forth with each having several near falls.  Each time News seemed in control, Ambrose would fight back using whatever it took and when caught in a submission hold and unable to reach the ropes, he manouvered News' hand and bit him in order to get the hold released.  With both men exhausted, News hoisted Ambrose across his shoulders but as he turned, Ambrose's boot caught the ref on the back of the head, sending him out of the ring so when News dropped Ambrose on his face then rolled him over for the pin, there was no ref to count the fall.  As Mr News tried to grasp what had happened, Ambrose crawled to the corner of the ring, picked up the title belt, threw it to News then kicked the belt into him, cutting his head.  Pinning the prone News, Ambrose screamed for the referee and a second ref appeared but News managed to kick out after a 2 count.  It was not to be Mr News' night however as, grabbing a handful of tights for leverage, Ambrose managed to get the pinfall.  While a bleeding Mr News was helped backstage from the ring, Ambrose revelled once again in the crowd's jeers, still SWE Heavyweight champion.  As Ambrose celebrated, Martyn Stallyon appeared and announced that he was cashing in his title shot and would face Ambrose for the title at Hell For Lycra XI.

Despite not having the crowd they would normally have at one of the Dundee venues, the wrestlers still put on a good show and I was really glad we had decided to go.

SWE have several events coming up, two shows on 26th July, "Uprising" in Dundee and "Battle Stations" in Perth, followed by "Hellbound" on 23rd August featuring Colt Cabana and Grado and then their big annual Hell For Lycra show on 30 August, featuring  WWE legend Road Warrior Animal and Dennis Stamp.  Tickets are available now.  Check out their Facebook for details on events and tickets.