From the short video released at the end of September by British Championship Wrestling entitled “NBNS_V1_Deleted_File.mp4”, fans knew only from the title alone that the promotion had something big planned for their annual ‘No Blood No Sympathy’ weekend shows in December, and they were right, the video closed with the words, “Matt Hardy is coming”.
Within weeks of that announcement, the December 2nd show was sold out in East Kilbride and as for the December 3rd show held in the Kilmarnock Grand Hall, those tickets were nearing limited numbers. A week before December, it was announced that the Kilmarnock show was sold out as well.
With this that announcement, mean’t that this year BCW has completed the unprecedented feat of selling out every one of their shows as well as presenting fans with matches that included Gail Kim, Ethan Carter 3rd, and on this night they would present Broken Matt Hardy and a returning Drew Galloway.
BCW Openweight Championship: Kenny Williams vs “The Rascal” Bubblegum.
Take two of the very best wrestlers in the UK at the moment before a jam packed Kilmarnock Grand Hall, with the prize being the BCW Openweight Championship and you will find that you will be treated to a fantastic opening contest. The match was a testament to the old adage of the more Bubblegum wanted to take the Title the more Williams wanted to keep it and an enthralling match they had.
Bubblegum began the bout with an excellent interaction with the fans when he announced he wouldn’t wrestle if they kept chanting the unflattering score from his beloved Manchester City match that occurred earlier in the day. Those chants turned to cheers as the BCW Openweight Champion Kenny Williams arrived.
It was Williams who was on attacking form throughout the bout as he stunned the challenger with furious clotheslines, running kicks as he planned to cap off an excellent year by retaining his Title. Bubblegum planned to derail those plans during the match by bending the rules to braking point throughout the bout in his attempt to add the Openweight Title to his impressive resume of Championships.
However, to a surrounding chorus of cheers it was the fan favourite Williams who would triumph, but afterwards cheers were for both men who gave the fans an excellent match and looking toward 2017, are sure to see them both face other again.
Jack Jester vs Chris Ridgeway.
A match setting two complete contrasting styles against each other was next, as the intimidating Jack Jester made his way to the ring showing a complete disregard for the fans as he was joined by Chris Ridgeway. Once the match began Jester could sense that Ridgeway was ready to make this bout a fast paced encounter as Jester took every opportunity to vacate the ring and delay his opponent meaning he couldn’t build any momentum. It was a key tactic and it helped gain the advantage as Jester managed to expose Ridgeway’s recently recovered injured shoulder aiming to keep him grounded.
Ridgeway wasn’t down and out yet as he launched a serious of attacks on his larger opponent by using his speed and agility, diving through the ropes connecting with suicide dive and swift kicks, but the vindictiveness of Jester was evident as he used a super-plex and a jumping Tombstone to put away the fan favourite. The aftermath of this superb match seemed to tease that their war wasn’t over, as Jester who stood on he ramp looked to mock the Ridgeway as Ridgeway looked in turn appeared to want another match.
WCPW Heavyweight Championship – Drew Galloway vs “Broken” Matt Hardy.
Before both men began the match, the crowd were already chanting, “This is Awesome!” as they stood before the 700 plus fans. The two locked up and fans were overwhelmingly split between chanting for Galloway and Hardy who traded blows.
The ring couldn’t hold the world class superstars as the furious action as they tumbled outside side the ring, they soon found themselves over the guardrail into the fans.
The bout was intense and brutal as they fought all over the arena and when they returned to the ring Hardy took control by biting the WCPW Champion and hitting a twist of fate. Recovering it was Galloway who fought back striking with his Claymore but both men looked to be at a stalemate.
Until just as it looked as if Hardy would take the win as he seized control again, Galloway locked in the FutureShock DDT and executed int to get the pinfall win.
The real winners were the fans as they were treated to an excellent match and only one word could sum up the bout, “Delete!”
“Iron Man” Joe Coffey vs Liam Thomson.
In what was sure to be a key match for who is in contention to be the new No1 Contender to the BCW Heavyweightship, fans in the Grand Hall were treated to the hard hitting bout between the excellent Joe Coffey versus one of the most underrated wrestlers in the UK, Liam Thomson.
The two exchanged a fantastic series of mat based manoeuvres that had fans engaged from the beginning and there was no seperating the two. That was until Coffey who capitalised on a vulnerable Thomson by running from the start of the ramp and catapulting himself over the top rope with a brutal forearm that looked to gain the win. However, Thomson demonstrated that he is still of the best in the industry by recovering from the Coffey barrage to strike with a back stabber and hard blows to the back to gain his own near fall.
Each man showed exactly why they are vastly respected in the industry with a great display of reversals as the match drew to a close, with Coffey persistently looking for his discus forearm and Thomson looking to close the bout, it appeared that both men knew what the other was thinking until Coffey who displayed his overwhelming strength managed to overpower Thomson to allow himself to strike not once but twice with the discus forearm to win gaining cheers from the fans.
Dylan Angel & Adam “Flex” Maxted vs The Aggression (Kid Fite & Davey Blaze).
One faction that has previously stated that they want full control of British Championship Wrestling, is the new version of The Aggression, a team formed by Kid Fite, Davey Blaze, Aaron Echo and Lou King Sharp that began on July 1st.
“You can take this as a decrelation of war…Graham McKay, we’re coming for your company wee man!”
And throughout the year they have cast a dark shadow over BCW and it’s Owner, Graham Mckay, as they have taken every opportunity to insult, intimidate and wreak havoc in the promotion. However, on this night they had plans to overshadow the event beginning with their mystery opponents.
Those mystery opponents were Dylan Angel and Adam Maxted who both have excelled in showing fans across the country why during 2017 they should be keeping an eye on them, and this match was no exception in showing what they are capable of.
Angel and Maxted looked to upset The Aggression numerous times during the bout to the fans delight but it was when Lou King Sharp and Aaron Echo who interfered in the match that the tide tuned. Facing overwhelming odds of two against four, Angel and Maxted were taken down as The Aggression took control of the match and when the referee was knocked out, the fan favourites began to pay the price further as Blaze and Fife were at their merciless best.
As they called for another referee to appear, it was the owner, Graham McKay who arrived in a referee outfit and the distraction was enough for Angel and Maxted to take full advantage of the situation with McKay counting the pin and the fans erupting with cheers.
It wasn’t over yet as a furious Aggression team surrounded McKay but the BCW Owner played his trump card as he had expected retaliation in some sort of way and had brought back up in the form of Drew Galloway and Matt Hardy dismantled all the members of The Aggression.
Broken Matt Hardy had to say about BCW, “This man Graaaham does an amazing job keeping professional wrestling alive right here Yesssss!”
BCW Heavyweight Championship – Falls Count Anywhere: “The Oddity” BT Gunn vs Stevie Xavier.
When you ask fans of BCW why the date Feburary 20th 2015 was so important, many mark that date down as the moment the BCW Tag Team Champions of Just Uz comprised of BT Gunn and Stevie Xavier started to dissolve. On that night in a BCW Championship Triple Threat Match also involving then Champion Kid Fite, many believe it was the actions of Xavier caused Fite to retain his Title against the two, and the friction began.
The duo remained a cohesive unit and retained their Tag Team Championships against Fleisch and Storm as well as The Proven and also Echo and Ali. However, the two could not continue to function together and it came to ahead at No Blood No Sympathy XIII when BT Gunn defeated Xavier. This wouldn’t be the end of their destructive rivalry as Xavier announced that even without his partner he would keep the Tag Team Championships on his own and on April 15th of this year in a fantastic match when the BCW Heavyweight, Openweight and the Tag Team Championships were up for grabs, a seething Xavier witnessed his former partner BT Gunn claim the BCW Heavyweight Title.
Xavier made it clear from then that he should be the Champion and after defeating Andy Wild, El Ligero and Liam Thomson in a four way bout in August he was named the No1 Contender. As the days drew nearer to December 3rd, it was announced that the two would face in a Falls Count Anywhere match and the stakes were raised higher, if BT Gunn lost, he would lose the Heavyweight Title, if Xavier lost, he would vacate the Tag Team Championships.
The two men furiously clashed from the beginning with BT Gunn on the attack leaving Xavier looking to create some space from the assault. However, fans have learned this year that Xavier is as deceptive as he is devious and demonstrated this as he lured the Champion outside the ring only to ambush him focusing his attack on the right leg. Champion and Challenger fought over the guard rail and striking each other with bins and signs until Xavier returned to the stage without Bt Gunn.
As fans looked around to see where their Champion had had gone, he stood above Xavier on the balcony and dived, an amazing spectacle to witness as he went for the pin, though only getting a near fall. Both returned to the ring, leaving fans chanting “This is Awesome!” as the two exchanged chops, vicious thrust kicks. Neither man looked to gain the advantage until BT Gunn locked in a chickening submission leaving Xavier no option but to tap out to the delight of packed Kilmarnock Grand Hall.
Afterwards as Xavier retreated to the back, knowing he will relinquish the Tag Team Championships, the match took it’s toll on the Champion as he clutched his right leg but not before applauding the BCW fans for an extraordinary year.
Photography by the excellent David J Wilson.