By Liz@Ms_Deathwish
Trent Seven vs Saxon Huxley
First off, Trent Seven of Moustache Mountain takes on Saxon Huxley, a Superstar I have not yet seen perform.
The ever popular Trent shows off with his trademark pomp and splendour, while Huxley is subjected to many chants from the crowd ridiculing his “Jesus-like” appearance. Both men show impressive grappling ability, with Huxley putting in a very credible performance against the former NXT Tag Team Champion. He manages to show dominance at times, giving Seven a good match and not going down easily at all. The majority of the match is a back and forth slug-fest, with Huxley managing to lock in some nice submission holds including a sequence involving a Cobra Clutch. Trent Seven struggles to escape from this hold until he pulls off his Seven Star Lariat, laying out Huxley on the mat. This was the turning point in the match for Seven as he hits a series of “British Strong Style” chops followed up by a brutal looking Snap Suplex. Huxley never recovers from this as Seven picks up the win from a Torture Rack hold into an emphatic Burning Hammer.
This match was a solid opener with both men showing strength and ability. Huxley impressed me as it was my first experience of him. I’m unsure if there is a story behind this match, but after Moustache Mountain recently made a point of calling out the tag teams in the locker room, I think it’s very possible that they are setting up for a tag team rivalry by pairing Huxley with someone.
Flash Morgan Webster vs Mark Coffey
This match is a result of the continuing tension between the Coffey brothers and a number of other Superstars. At the NXTUK Championship Tournament the brothers from Scotland interfered in a match to make a statement. Flash Morgan Webster was one of the participants in that match so is looking for a little retribution. To add more fuel to the fire, a couple of weeks ago on NXTUK, Webster ran to the aid of friend and fellow UK Tournament match entrant Mark Andrews after his recent singles match with Joe Coffey. Following Andrews’ match, both brothers turned their ire on the Welsh high flyer, forcing Webster to run in and even the playing field. With this is mind, there are plenty of reasons why these two want to take lumps out of each other.
Mark Coffey has an obvious size and power advantage, but Webster has speed and sound technical ability on his side, as well as a supportive crowd. Unfortunately for Webster, the real X Factor in this match is Mark’s brother Joe and we can expect him to try his best to influence the outcome. Coffey dominates for much of this match, using his arsenal of high-impact offence to try and ground the athletic Webster. However, despite the attempted interference of Joe Coffey, and a slip up on the ropes, Webster wins the match with a Crucifix pin by catching the big man off-guard. Following the surprise win. Both brothers seek revenge by attacking Webster only to be interrupted by the entrance of Mark Andrews and the “Kiwi Buzzsaw” Travis Banks. Along with Webster and Andrews, Travis Banks was also a participant in the match that was disrupted by the Coffey brothers at the Royal Albert Hall earlier this year. With the numbers finally on their side, Webster and Co take to the ring only for Mark and Joe to beat a hasty retreat.
I’m definitely intrigued to know exactly where they are going with this rivalry. The Coffey brothers now face a band of three opponents. Does this mean they will look for the help of someone else? Will they try to cement their dominance and really send a message by taking on all three and decimating them? We shall have to keep watching and see how it plays out.
Danny Burch vs Sam Gradwell
Following the announcement last week of Danny Burch making his debut on NXTUK, I’ve been looking forward to seeing his first match on his home brand. He was the first English wrestler I remember seeing on NXT and I’m a huge fan of his work teaming up with Oney Lorcan on the original NXT show. I didn’t recognise Sam Gradwell until I saw the intro video from him showing his appearance in the first NXTUK tournament. He has changed his look somewhat since then.
Burch comes out to a rapturous response from the crowd, with a real “hometown hero” feel to it. Until very recently, not many British wrestlers managed to get airtime on US TV. People like Danny Burch paved the way and helped lay the foundations on which shows like NXTUK are built. He deserves a hero’s welcome.
Gradwell is larger than Burch but that makes little difference as the NXT regular from London comes tearing out of the starting gate, firing on all cylinders. He is often quoted as claiming “British Strong Style” for himself, stating the fact he has been wrestling far longer than those who carry the moniker nowadays, such as the current NXT champ Pete Dunne. This strong style background is in full effect in this match as he takes down his bigger opponent with ease following a barrage of chops and strikes. Gradwell gains the upper hand at times, using these moments to taunt Burch and sling mocking insults. The Strong Style Brit proves too big a challenge for Gradwell though as he is pinned by Burch following his signature top-rope DDT.
This match was mainly concerned with putting Danny Burch over with the British crowd. It was a great showing of his explosive strong-style and even showed off his previous boxing prowess. I’m a big supporter of the London native and I hope WWE has some exciting plans for him in NXTUK. He made his intentions clear with a post-match statement calling out Pete Dunne for a title match, which I think would be an absolutely outstanding battle. A real showcase of the best of British wrestling. Gradwell also put himself across as a legitimate opponent for Burch, selling the match well and scoring some good offense of his own. I certainly look forward to seeing him again.
Main Event: Noam Dar vs Zack Gibson
Following on from last week, where Gibson pulled off one of the “Most Heeliest of All the Heels” promos, this match was set up to have Liverpool’s Number 1 take on Noam Dar, The Scottish Supernova.
The booing starts before Gibson has even made his entrance and it’s not long before people are standing up with their shoes held aloft, upholding this bizarre tradition of Zack Gibson chants. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again but the British crowds really do add something special to wrestling shows. A sense of humour and fun and a feeling of not needing to take things so seriously. Whatever it is, I love it.
Noam Dar is known on Twitter for his witty put-downs and barbs aimed at other wrestlers and that sense of wit adds an extra dimension to this match. At one point he motions to the referee to help him get his boot off so he can join in with the crowd’s chorus of “shoes off if you hate Gibson”.
This match was honestly a fantastic exhibition of both men’s technical ability. Dar cut his teeth in 205 Live which tends towards a more high-flying style of match, however he is an excellent grappler and submission expert. It was great to see him have a platform for that skill. It turned into the “Battle For Two Body-parts” with Dar focusing his attacks on Gibson’s knee, while Gibson concentrated on Noam Dar’s shoulder. We were treated to a sublime back and forth between them as they sought to incapacitate each other in new and interesting ways by destroying the body part of choice. The action spilled out of the ring more than once, leading to some brutal spots for both men. Gibson tried multiple times to take out Dar with his submission finisher Shankly Gates, but the slippery scotsman proved a hard man to keep hold of, escaping each time. Going for the big finish, Dar landed a double stomp on Gibson’s knee, while his leg was hung up on the ropes, but he landed awkwardly, meaning both men were laid out in the ring, writhing in agony. Noam battles on, attempting to submit Gibson with a sequence of leg based submission holds, including a knee bar and an ankle lock. Exhaustion is really setting in now for both these men, but a final flurry sees Gibson pick up a hard-fought win with the Helter Skelter to finish.
This match ran to just over 20 minutes and was yet another world class main event from the UK brand. They are pulling it out of the bag week after week so far, setting the bar high for future shows. I couldn’t pick a winner myself so I would say either man deserved it. They both took us on a journey, with humour, sacrifice and tenacity, making for a PPV quality match that wouldn’t look out of place at NXT: Takeover.
