Robbie In The Ring - Liverpool Echo

[Jaded]

Thanks JK :) Day 16: Tuesday August 17th Ummm... okay, if yesterday was bad, today's even worse. Robbie turns up for the WWC show in Puerto Rico - only to be told his scheduled opponent is ill, so he won't be wrestling tonight. Robbie is frustrated, but rolls his eyes. "Fine," he snaps at Carlos Colon. "Give me my money and I'm gone." "Sorry, kid," Colon responds. "You don't wrestle, you don't get paid." Robbie raises his eyebrows. "So you're saying YOU get me over here on a wasted journey. YOU make me suffer another goddamn journey to the middle of nowhere. And I am expected to pay for it?" A voice from behind Robbie booms out. "That's the way it is, kid. Gonna do something about it?" It's the New Mexican wildman, Bruiser Brody. Robbie glares over at him. I tug at Robbie's sleeve. "Let's go, Rob." I say. He nods. "Yeah, guess we should go." He turns away from the Bruiser. Then turns back. Smash. Robbie's fist implants itself on Brody's face. "Mind your own business!" he yells, kicking Brody in the leg. Unfortunately, this is never likely to be a good plan for Rob. Brody yells in anger, grabbing Rob and hurling him against a wall, then blasting him with two or three hard right hands. Thankfully, Buddy Landell, Jose Luis Rivera, and a couple of others drag him off. Carlos Colon looks over at us and shakes his head. Robbie has just broken one of the wrestling world's commandments - "Thou shalt not fight when there is no-one paying money to watch." I pick Robbie up and help him out. On his way out, he yells at Carlos a suggestion as to just where he can stick his $40 a night. Carlos shrugs. I can see why Robbie said it, but it may not be smart - that's far more than most companies will pay a 16-year old. Still, hopefully we can cut down on the travelling slightly, with no more trips to Puerto Rico.

[XellenceOfXecution]

That Brookside kid sure has some balls to be taking Brody in a backstage brawl! :D

[Jaded]

Unfortunately, if he ever goes back there, Brody will probably tear them off... Day 17: Wednesday August 18th Finally, a match again. I'm starting to get worried about Robbie... he doesn't seem to have been to the gym for about a week, and even in Florida today he wasn't happy. Didn't talk to anyone backstage, and pretty much blew Mike Davis off when he came to say hi. Just wants to get in the ring, fight Jack Hart, and get out of here. Match 15: Robbie Brookside vs Jack Hart Oh man... what a match. WHAT A MATCH. Hart dominates to start, but Robbie comes back to match him blow for blow. And there are blows, with strikes making up a large part of the early offense. Robbie seems to be getting back into it when he hits a slingshot kneedrop, but a few minutes later, Jack gets the Gutwrench suplex in to a backbreaker. Robbie fights back into it, but misses a half senton from the top... Jack goes for a brass knuckles punch, but Robbie ducks. Robbie throws his opponent into the corner, then hits a backflip dropkick! A ten punch, and a second backflip dropkick nearly gets the win. But Jack comes back, going for the brass knuckles punch again, only for Robbie to dive out of the way just in time. Robbie then goes for the slingshot kneedrop after dropping Jack, but misses. Hart goes for a clothesline, Brookside drops him over the ropes... and then dives with a forearm smash, which misses again and hits the guard rail. There may be a lot of missed moves here, but the crowd are going crazy for it anyway. The two brawl on the outside for a few minutes, slamming each other into the guard rail, the ringpost, the ring apron, and Jack FINALLY nails him with those brass knux. He rolls Robbie back into the ring, but it takes him too long, and Brookside kicks out of the pin attempt. Robbie ducks a running knee attempt, rolling his opponent up for two. Going up top, he hits a super arm drag, then gets a slingshot kneedrop. A charging basement dropkick gets two, then a flying forearm smash misses. Hart covers, for a two and three quarters. There are two or three pinfall sequences which see several near falls, but Robbie then gets whipped to the ropes by Hart. Hart goes for a flying forearm smash, but Robbie ducks, then hits one of his own... and gets the win! Great victory for Rob, and he's over the moon, especially as he's being applauded for his best ever match. In fact, he's so pleased that I take the opportunity to point out how much better he wrestled having a couple of days off... and he takes the hint and calls UWA to tell them he won't be working tomorrow! Not sure how they react, but I'm in heaven at the thought of a day lazing around Miami... and Robbie even says he's going to go down to the gym. A successful day all round!

[captainlou]

I think that the time that the lady is spending with the other wrestlers is starting to wear thin on poor Robbie and he's starting to pick fights with the wrong people. Seriously though, I feel that Robbie is going to be okay and should see more title shots come his way before long. Lex Luger is one strong sob and really tough to get the upper hand with. Keep up the great work with this.

[Jaded]

Day 18: Thursday August 19th Wonderful day. I laze around in the morning, Robbie hits the gym. We take it easy on the journey to Memphis. Get there fairly early, catch a few of the guys from CWA in a bar for a few drinks, then have an early night. Day 19: Friday August 20th Okay... not so good day. Robbie's not booked... and not really sure why. Jarrett ummm's and aaah's a bit about it, but somehow manages to get out of the conversation without giving any reason. Robbie sighs and gets ready for Texas. Day 20: Saturday August 21st Well, should have gone to Texas. Unfortunately, Rob isn't feeling too well in the morning. Apparently, at least. If he weren't 16, I'd be tempted to say that he was hungover... but that's couldn't be. Anyway, he calls in to SWCW to apologise for not making it, and we go back to Florida. Day 21: Sunday August 22nd Big day, as WWF are running their massive Summerslam show. In CWF, Robbie gets the match everyone was hoping for - another bout against Jack Hart. Unfortunately, today I'M ill. Okay, I'll admit he obviously wasn't hungover yesterday, because I've managed to catch something from him. Match 16: Robbie Brookside vs Jack Hart (Robbie's words on the match) We brawled a lot, I missed the forearm dive to the outside, I got a couple of nice backflip dropkicks, and in the end, the cheating bastard nailed me with some brass knuckles for the win. [The real reason for the short description is because I clicked past the match log accidentally... oops.] Robbie tells me the big news from the show was another Florida title change, with Blackjack Mulligan defeating Jos Leduc for the belt. Meanwhile at WWF Summerslam, Bruno Sammartino, the legend, defeated Afa the Samoan in the main, Jimmy Snuka beat Don Muraco, and John Studd got past Pedro Morales.

[Jaded]

Day 22: Monday August 23rd I'm still not feeling good... but Monday means Memphis, and Memphis means Ricky Morton, so I struggle in to the Coliseum. And I'm rewarded with the chance to see Robbie in his first ever 4 vs 4 match. The teammates - Gama Singh, a Calgary wrestler trying to make it in the US. Mando Guerrero, the NWA Lightweight champion, extremely popular down in Mexico but not so well known here. And Tony Falk. Their opponents - Ken Mantell, an up and comer. Doug Gilbert, Eddie's brother. Perennial underachiever George South. And finally, last but definitely not least, Giant Haystacks, one of the most famous British wrestlers of all time. And to make things even more interesting... it's a table elimination match. Match 17: Robbie Brookside, Gama Singh, Mando Guerrero and Tony Falk vs Doug Gilbert, Ken Mantell, George South and Giant Haystacks. This was a long, long match, so I'm just going to run down the highlights - and there were lots! Gama and Doug starts, Gama bringing a chair into the ring with him. Gama slams Doug down onto the steel chair. A bear squeeze from Singh pressurises him, but Doug manages to tag out eventually. Haystacks comes in, stepping on Gama's chest, then hitting a twisting powerslam and the patented giant elbow drop. Gama fights back, whipping the giant to the corner and tagging in Brookside. Robbie hits a backflip dropkick, but misses a slingshot kneedrop. Robbie gets a forward roll into a punch combination which I think Ricky taught him, looked very impressive! Robbie then nails the kneedrop, but misses a half senton bomb. Haystacks hits a falling headbutt to the forehead and a double stomp. Robbie tags in Tony Falk. Falk hits the seated bionic elbow, before knocking down the giant with a running knee to the head. He then gets a flying double axe handle. Leaving the ring, Falk slides a table and a chair in. Haystacks hits a running clothesline but misses a headbutt to the groin. Falk hits a butt drop on the ropes, then a big splash, but misses a giant elbow. Mando gets the tag in, and hits a running dropkick. Haystacks tags George South in. Mando comes close to slamming South through a table straight away but can't quite manage it. A dropkick works for Mando, a senton misses. South hits a running clothesline. Mando hot shots South into the ropes, South tags in Mantell, Ken drops him with brass knuckles. Mando recovers though, to choke out Mantell and hit a senton. Ken Mantell drops him with the knuckles again. Mando comes back to nail a basement dropkick. Mantell eventually tags South back in. South goes for a discus punch, but Mando ducks and slams George through a table for the first elimination! Mantell is in, and throws Mando from the ring. Mando nails a running dropkick though, then a basement dropkick, and locks on the campana submission hold. Ken slides a table into the ring. Mantell locks an Indian Deathlock onto Mondo. Ken tries the brass knuckles, but Mando avoids them and locks in the Suastica stretch. Mando manages a spinning back suplex onto a chair, following up with a basement dropkick. He locks in a scissored ankle lock, then a second basement dropkick. But Mantell fights back, and hits a leaping piledriver through a table to level the teams. Goma Singh comes in to square off with Mantell, locking on a hammerlock and screaming at Ken. He hits a released German suplex, then Ken tags in Doug Gilbert. Gama slams Doug's head into the mat, goes for a camel clutch, but Doug tags out and Giant Haystacks comes in. Low blow stops the giant in his tracks, and another. Spinning toe hold does some damage, but Haystacks throws Gama over the ring to the outside, then tags out to Ken Mantell. Singh grabs his riding crop, however, and whips Mantell with it. But Mantell comes back, hitting another brass knuckles punch and hitting a double arm DDT through the table to put his team on top. Robbie comes in, a series of dropkicks, then a running butt drop. A forward Russian legsweep takes Ken down, and a flying forearm smash hurts him. He puts Mantell on a table, climbs up top, and hits the half senton to make it 2 vs 2. Robbie tags out to Tony Falk, Haystacks comes in for his side. Giant splash misses, though, but Haystacks recovers to go outside, slide a table in, then hit two giant elbows on Tony when he follows him to the ringside area. A third misses, and Falk rolls the giant back in. Double axe handle takes him down as he gets back up. Running clothesline then running knee do the same. Haystacks tags out, Doug hits an axe handle of his own. Falk comes back though, to hit a bodyslam through the table and give his team the advantage. Haystacks is in, running clothesline, giant splash, massive elbow. Eventually, he gets an Atlas bear hug, and tosses Falk through a table like a rag doll. And we're down to the two Brits... a chance for Robbie to make a real name for himself! Unfortunately, he wipes out on a diving forearm smash. He does get on with a sleeper hold though, leaping on the giant's back, then manages to somehow get him on a table. Going up to the top rope, he looks down... and misses a knee drop, nearly putting himself through the table! Haystacks slides a table into the ring. But Robbie goes for the knee drop onto the table again a few minutes later... and gets the memorable win, after 66 minutes! Definitely Robbie's best ever match, the back is buzzing after this classic!

[D. Boons Ghost]

Fantastic last match! Go Robbie! :)

[Jaded]

Day 23: Tuesday August 24th Another day off, thanks to Robbie quitting WWC. I love the long lie-ins, the lazing around, the strolling through Memphis or Miami or other places we haven't seen so much of... unfortunately, Rob needs to make a living, so I'm enjoying them while I can. Later tonight, we catch the WWF's Tuesday Night Titans show, seeing Bob Backlund retain his World title against Sgt Slaughter and Bruno Sammartino beat Jimmy Snuka for the I-C belt. Fun show, with an impressive performance from one of the WWF's newest signings, a guy called Hulk Hogan, looking strong as he pinned Jesse Ventura in a four vs four tag match. Day 24: Wednesday August 25th Okay, Florida once more. I like Florida, as I keep saying. We get to hang with Brickhouse, going down the beach during the day. (Robbie gets recognised, which makes his day - a few cute girls come over and tell him they're big fans, he can't stop boasting about it for hours!) Then at night, CWF show for another match with Fit Finlay. Crowd are really pumped for it, having already seen a great match between Brickhouse and Jack Hart, an impressive power display from Lex Luger, who threw Brian Blair around a lot before losing to a roll-up in about nine minutes, and then a challenge from Jos Leduc to Blackjack Mulligan to set up the main event. Match 18: Robbie Brookside vs Dave Finlay Finlay immediately works Robbie's arm over, getting a hammerlock and driving him into the corner. He tries to smash Rob's head into the turnbuckle, but Robbie blocks it, whips him to the ropes, then takes him down with a dropkick. Robbie with a head scissors, then a headlock, but Finlay gets to the ropes. Fit falls on top of him as he tries a bodyslam, then blasts him with a few uppercuts and twice hits a forearm to his face, cutting Rob open. Robbie bleeds way too easily these days... I hope there isn't any real damage to his face from some of these matches. Hammerlock from Robbie, this time he hits the bodyslam, but goes to pick Fit up and seems to lose focus for a minute, letting Fit get a bear hug on. Finlay puts on a double arm lever submission; Robbie somehow breaks it. British piledriver from Fit is all she wrote on the 10 minute mark, though. Poor match to start off with made slightly better by the closing couple of minutes. Still, don't think Robbie's that happy with it. No one in the back is too bothered though; it's easily CWF's best show of the month, with Blackjack retaining his belt in his first defence, a classic bout with previous champ Jos Leduc.

[Jaded]

Day 25: Thursday August 26th I halfheartedly tried to get Robbie to ditch UWA again tonight, but probably wouldn't go down too well. In fact, they're hugely relieved to see us; apparently a combination of other shows on tonight and a sickness bug means they're struggling for numbers. Matt Borne, who we haven't met before, is given a rare spot in the main event, taking on Mascara Sagrada. Borne wrestles here as 'Doink', an evil clown who terrifies kids. To be honest, he doesn't need the makeup to terrify me - we walk over to say hi and he yells at us to leave him alone. He's deep in conversation with Stephen King, the horror writer who wrote the books that Carrie and the Shining were based on. Seems a strange guy to have backstage at a wrestling event, but he's apparently a big fan. In fact, King comes over to apologise for Borne's behaviour a bit later. I did try to get an exclusive interview, but he backed out, sorry. He did admit that he was talking Borne to research his next book. "About clowns?" I asked. He laughed, "No, wrestling. A horror book about clowns?" I shrugged my shoulders. "Hey, you never know, it could be good." There are only two matches apart from that main event - Juan Rodriguez will team with La Parka to take on The Cobra and Art Crews (who looks in no fit state to work, obviously suffering from the bug, but was pressed into service because so many other people are away.) And Robbie will open up against Doug Somers, a 26 year old who splits his time between UWA and the American Wrestling Association. Pre-match, the owner has a quiet word and suggests that this may be a day to take things easy. In particular, it's not a great time for either of them to win in five minutes. So if they could try and spin things out a bit... Match 19: Robbie Brookside vs Doug Somers Robbie goes after Doug's arm at the start and just concentrates on it, hitting arm drags, hammerlocks, and a variety of armbars. It's not a hugely exciting strategy, but it works well, and the technical wrestling fans in the crowd seem to appreciate it. There's nearly a screw up as he gets adventurous and misses a flying forearm, just kicking out of the resultant cover in time, but most of the match, Robbie's firmly in control. He's also bearing in mind the request to keep this one going a while. Unfortunately for Robbie, on the 22 minute mark, an Irish whip sees Somers leap up top, come off with a flying sunset flip, and score the win. Day 26: Friday August 27th Night off tonight for Robbie, but at least this time Jerry Jarrett managed to let him know well in advance - in fact, so much in advance that he nearly called Central States to see if they wanted him to try out, but instead we decided to go up to Memphis anyway and watch the show from front-row seats. Fun fun show, especially since the Rock N Roll Express had the night off as well and had the same idea as we did. More attention from fans for Robbie pre-show, as he signed a few autographs. (And hey, who cares that most people saw Robert and Ricky, ran over to get pictures taken with them, and suddenly realised hey, the other guy's a wrestler as well.) Matches were nothing special, but all pretty watchable, and Ricky livened up Gama Singh vs Giant Haystacks by good naturedly heckling his dad, who was refereeing. Post-show, we went out for a few drinks (strictly non-alcoholic in Robbie's case, honestly... or at least that's what I'm saying in public.) I got tired so left early, and Ricky was kind enough to walk me back to my room - a real gentleman.

[D. Boons Ghost]

As always, a fantastic read. I very much enjoyed the Stephen King cameo! :) Brilliant use of pop culture from the time period. Robbie has been having a rough go of it, of late - but he is still showing flashes of potential greatness. Soon enough, Brookside will be hitting his stride and putting away these guys.

[captainlou]

Steven King was at the show? Gee, he must have given his box seat at Fenway Park to one of his friends because the Red Sox were playing at home.

[Jaded]

Day 27: Saturday August 28th Ouch. Last night really seemed like a good idea at the time! If I'm feeling worse for wear, Robbie's slightly worse. He calls SWCW and explains that he's still ill. I'll be honest, I think the word 'still' was his biggest mistake there. Jonathan Boyd finds it slightly hard to believe that he's been ill all week when he's wrestled three matches. Robbie is a tiny bit wrongfooted by this, but explains that when he said 'still ill', he really meant 'ill again'. He thinks. Jonathan suggests that maybe Robbie's relationship with SWCW is no longer of mutual benefit to the two parties. Robbie agrees, probably because he's too hungover... ill, rather... to understand what two or three of those words mean. At that point, Boyd hangs up, and I have to explain to Robbie that he's just been fired. He takes the news surprisingly well, although I'm not convinced he has a clue what I'm talking about. Day 28: Sunday August 29th Big day for wrestling today, with an Ivan Koloff vs Roddy Piper match at MACW's Clash of the Champions show - and more importantly, Brookside vs Finlay part 3 in Florida. Part 1 in Texas saw Fit win by submission. Part 2 in Florida saw him get the duke by pinfall. Is today the day for Robbie to get a win back? Bill Alfonso comes over to Robbie as we get backstage. He tells us this is Finlay's fifth match in as many days - he's taken on Marty Jones, Solar, and Juan Rodriguez since Wednesday's fight against Rob, and beaten them all. In fact, he's won nine of his last ten, the only loss coming in a six man tag where partner Kelly Kiniski got pinned. Apparently though, there's a rumour that Marty really did a number on Fit's knee on Thursday, and he may be struggling slightly with that if the match goes long. So, a possible in for Robbie there... fingers crossed. Match 20: Robbie Brookside vs Fit Finlay Robbie starts by following Alfonso's advice, kicking Finlay's legs repeatedly before blasting him with a dropkick to take him down. When Fit gets back up, a few more kicks stall him, and a monkey flip sends him back to the mat. Picking him up from behind, Rob locks in a hammerlock, then repeatedly blasts the back of Finlay's knee with kicks. Throwing him to the corner, Robbie puts him on the top rope and crotches him, then tries to climb up alongside him, only for Fit to push him away and hit a flying elbow. Finlay takes control, slamming Robbie's head into the mat, then getting a double knee lift. Throwing Rob to the ropes, Fit tries a British piledriver again but Robbie, wary after the last match, is able to fight his way out. He avoids a running knee, and manages to use Fit's momentum to throw him to the outside, but misses with a forearm smash suicida. Fit drags him back into the ring, hits a double axe handle, and locks in the double knee backbreaker for another submission victory.

[Jaded]

Okay, dates will be a little screwy from here due to the 4 week months in WreSpi... Day 29: Monday September 3rd Normally Monday would be Memphis, of course, but it's CWF's Fort Horner Hesterly Armory show tonight. Robbie's offered the chance to stay in Florida and take on Fit Finlay once more. A quick call to Jarrett to check he doesn't mind, and we're set for Rob/Fit part IV. Hopefully, different outcome from the last time... and the time before that... and the time before that. Match 21: Robbie Brookside vs Fit Finlay Jab punch from Robbie followed by a gutwrench suplex gets Finlay down, then he quickly works on the head with a head scissors and a head and arm lock. A couple of dropkicks, but Fit takes control with some brawling. Robbie hits a forearm blow, but can't lift Fit for a gutwrench suplex, and Fit Irish whips him, then nails a double knee lift. Double arm lever submission can't make Rob quit, but he taps out when Fit puts a stepover leg lock on after 9 minutes. Blah match, and I think Robbie would be happy to never have to fight Finlay again... Day 30: Tuesday September 4th [I don't think this actually works because of the International Date Line, but if we can suspend our disbelief, or imagine Robbie invented instant teleportation while he wasn't wrestling, or something...] A new experience for Robbie today, as he heads down to Australia to try out for World Championship Wrestling. Long journey, so long that I decide not to go, instead taking up an offer to go and watch the Mid-South show, in which the Rock N Roll Express lost a fantastic match against another new tag team, the Midnight Express. Morton and Gibson were screwed over, dominating the match but losing when the Midnights' manager, a scrawny guy called Jim Cornette, blasted Ricky with his tennis racquet. What kind of idiot ref lets someone bring a tennis racquet down to the ring? It's not like Bjorn Borg was waiting for a game there! Robbie seems a little disappointed - I guess it's cool having your own journalist following you around all day - but I think he was okay with it. He filled me in on what happened when he got back, anyway. He was taking on a Canadian high flyer called Ben Bassarab, a youngster from Calgary also being given a shot at a permanent contract with the fed. Backstage, the crew was very different from those Robbie's used to in the US and Mexico. Normally, Robbie knows the majority of people backstage at a card, but this time they were all complete strangers - although Bret Hart, brother-in-law of Jim Neidhart, said that Jim had mentioned Robbie to him. Bret is a star in Canada, partly because his father owns the big Stampede promotion in Calgary, but mainly due to his talent. He's also making a name for himself over in the UK, so Rob was thrilled to talk to him. Wonder if he can put in a good word for Robbie with his dad? Match 22: Robbie Brookside vs Ben Bassarab Robbie is, as usual, less than effusive when recapping one of his matches. The match was a no-DQ affair, and he took the opportunity to throw Ben outside, then slam him through a table and suplex him onto a chair. Ben came back though, rolling Robbie onto a table and elbow dropping him through it, but then missed a big splash and put himself through another table. Rolling Ben back into the ring after a few minutes brawling outside, Robbie hit the slingshot kneedrop, and went on to pick up the win a few minutes later with a slingshot sunset flip. Robbie is offered a contract post-match, as is Bassarab, and both accept. Robbie admits he's a little worried about all of the travelling, but says that $40 a night was too much to turn down. Management suggest to them that they might make a good tag team, and so the Cross-Atlantic Connection is born!

[Jaded]

Day 31: Wednesday September 5th Day off today, with Robbie way too tired to wrestle - he'd let Florida know that was likely as soon as he heard about the Australia date, and they're fine with it. I tell him that I'll catch up with him on Thursday - I've decided to stay in Mississippi to see Ricky try and get revenge on Dennis Condrey of the Midnight Express. Ricky teams with crazy Indian Tiger Jeet Singh to beat Condrey and 'Lord Humongous'. Yes, someone thought that dressing up a guy called Jeff Van Kamp as someone from Mad Max II would do good business. Thankfully, Morton pins him after a top rope splash to get the win, then nearly gets his hands on Cornette post match, only for Condrey's regular partner Bobby Eaton to save his manager. Day 32: Thursday September 6th Carlos Flores calls Robbie to tell him they don't really have anything planned for him tonight, so maybe it would be easier if he didn't bother going up. Robbie's relieved - more of a chance to catch up on some sleep he missed with the Australia trip. I'm happy as well, it's good to catch up with him properly and hear more about the Australian trip as he works out down at the gym - I even do a little exercise myself, although I've never been that big a fan of getting hot and sweaty. Well, not in the mornings, at least... Day 33: Friday September 7th Memphis, and a dream match for Robbie - Haystacks wants revenge for his loss in the 4 on 4 tag match a couple of weeks ago. Lawler is more than happy to book the match, so we have a clash of the Brits! In the back, I talk to Paul Morton, who'll be refereeing the match - he says Ricky's been enjoying my company in Mid-South, nice to know I'm a topic of conversation! Match 23: Robbie Brookside vs Giant Haystacks The giant takes control from the start, imposing himself on Robbie with a massive slap to the chest, then holding him at arm's length with a wristlock and laughing as Robbie can't reach to punch his way out of it. Whipping Robbie to the ropes, he hits a kick to the gut, but a second whip is reversed by Robbie with a huge amount of effort, only for Rob to miss a dropkick. Another whip sees him meet with a running body smash, then a double stomp, and Rob rolls to the outside to recover. Giant follows him out, and Robbie manages to take him down then drop a few knees to keep him there. Head and arm lock keeps him down as Robbie tries to work out how the hell he can regain control from this guy. Alternating knees and elbows work for a bit until one misses, and Haystacks hits a falling headbutt. But Haystacks misses a giant elbow after sliding a table into the ring, only for Robbie to miss one from the apron. Giant locks on a bear hug, and Robbie looks as if he's ready to quit, although he can't on the outside, obviously. Rolling Rob into the ring, Haystacks hits a giant splash, and this one's over on 12 minutes. Okay match, with Giant's power and weight impressing everyone. A shame Rob couldn't manage more offense, obviously. Main event, Jerry Lawler defends AWA Southern Heavyweight title against Kareem Muhammad. Post-show, Ricky calls Paul to tell him that he beat Jesse Barr in Mid-South, asks how Robbie got on - then decides to say hi to me. Well, who wouldn't want to talk to someone like moi when they had a chance?

[D. Boons Ghost]

Haystacks against Brookside just isn't fair. :)

[Jaded]

My thoughts exactly, D Boon... wait until you see this next match! Day 34: Saturday September 8th The AWA are close to Memphis running a big show called Superclash, and Gordon Solie called Robbie to tell him he'd been given a few tickets and had two spare if we wanted them! We went along, and joined Solie and his wife Eileen. Gordon is just incredibly knowledgeable about the sport, talking us through the seven matches as we watched. He also gave Robbie hints all through, especially in Greg Gagne and Jim Brunzell's tag match, pointing out the things Brunzell did which Rob could learn from. Really nice of him to think of us. Day 35: Sunday September 9th We hit the road to Florida, travelling with Gordon and Eileen, and the journey flew by. It was a day off for Robbie; unfortunately we didn't find that out until we got to the arena. He wasn't too bothered about it though, catching up with Jack Hart and Lex Luger in the back and then watching the card. Robbie then had to choose between Memphis and Australia tomorrow, Australia would probably make more sense because then he could do the two days there rather than travelling down and back so quickly - but when he called Lawler to see if he'd be needed, Jerry told him the plan was for him to be in the semi-main - and in a rematch with Giant Haystacks! Robbie couldn't resist the challenge, and instead called WCW to tell them he couldn't make it this week. Day 36: Monday September 10th So, Memphis for Haystacks again. Robbie was deep in conversation with Jack Hart last night after he heard the match, and he's talking to for a long time pre-show tonight... won't say what about. Match 24: Robbie Brookside vs Giant Haystacks Robbie starts off working the arm again, with a few holds and strikes, until Haystacks hurls him to the ropes. Charging at Robbie, the giant goes for a running body smash, but Rob dives out of the way, and Haystacks smashes into the ref! The ref is still down a minute or two later, when Rob manages to shift his weight as Giant goes for a stomach breaker and land on top to cover. Robbie takes the giant down, dropping a few knees, but they're not having much of an effect. A second shoulder breaker attempt also ends with Robbie covering the giant for the pin; this time with the ref awake and able to count, but he impressively kicks out, hurling Rob off him, after just one. Robbie decides to go hit and run, jumping off the turnbuckles with a series of dropkicks and knees, most of which hit, although a couple are unsuccessful - but Haystacks is never able to get back into control. Robbie manages to get the giant to the outside, sidestepping a charge then pushing him through the ropes. He strikes a standing knee from the apron, but gets rolled back in a minute later. A running clothesline puts Robbie down, a splash misses, but Robbie desperately tries a half senton bomb which misses, and the big man nails a giant elbow to get the win. The only match left is Ricky Morton against Adrian Street, and it's a bad day all around for my favourites, with Ricky getting narrowly beaten in 20 minutes, much to my disgust. Day 37: Tuesday September 11th As fun as Australia was last week, Robbie doesn't want to travel there for one show again, so he's decided to give tonight's a miss and then work both their shows next week instead of doing Monday's Memphis one. Lawler's happy, WCW are happy, and I get to lie-in so I'm ecstatic. Plus, another chance to see the WWF's Tuesday Night Titans show. It has 8 matches, none of which are particularly good if I'm honest, although Dick Murdoch's defeat of Pedro Morales stands out as the best of a bad bunch. Hey, a few more off-nights like that, and maybe they'll be looking for a young British superstar to come in and revolutionise the company! Robbie is very excited when I suggest this, although slightly less so when I say that we should mention the idea to Skull Murphy so he has some time to prepare. Robbie seems a bit strange today, maybe it's the disappointment of losing to Haystacks twice in a row - tried to persuade him to take me to the Mid-South show; Ricky was headlining against Kamala, but he wasn't keen on the idea. Day 38: Wednesday September 12th Well, Florida today, and another night here without any match for Robbie. I'm starting to wonder whether they were less happy than they claimed last week when he couldn't make it after the Aussie show, and perhaps this is payback... probably just me being stupid, everyone seems friendly enough backstage. We also get to see a title change, as Mike Graham and Barry Windham lose in a contest for the vacant tag belts to Kevin Sullivan and his 'brainwashed' ally Ron Bass. Day 39: Thursday September 13th Another day off; like last week, Flores called Robbie to let him know he wouldn't be required in Mexico tonight. I can't help but feel he hasn't really been rewarded for helping them out by spinning his match with Doug Somers out for as long as possible the other week... still, I'm sure his loyalty will be remembered. We decide to head up to Memphis early.

[captainlou]

Haystacks seems to be overpowering Robbie but it looks like in Brookside/Haystacks II that Robbie got a little more offense in than he did in the first match.

[Jaded]

Day 40: Friday September 14th Okay... three nights, no matches for Robbie. This time he barely reacts when Lawler tells him there's nothing scheduled tonight, just shrugging his shoulders. He is able to catch up with Phil Hickerson, an older wrestler who's been impressed by what he's seen of Robbie, and also drool over Miss Linda again. Not a great show, and we leave before the end, reminding Jerry as we go that Robbie won't be around on Monday. Day 41: Saturday September 15th Robbie hits the gym for a large portion of the day, I hit Miami's shops - yes, we're in Florida ready for tomorrow's show, hoping against hope that Rob will actually have a match to wrestle this time. Day 42: Sunday September 16th Our hopes were shattered by the CWF, and to be honest, the booking is almost weird enough for us to think they are holding a grudge against Robbie. In one match, Lex Luger, Skull Murphy, and Fit Finlay took on Steve DiSalvo and Duke Myers - why not just turn that into a six-man? Oh well, always Wednesday... Day 43: Monday September 17th My first day in Australia! There's a slight hiccup before we go - MLW call Rob on his way out, telling him they want him to try out tonight. He's sorely tempted, but explains that he already has plans. They're not too pleased, by the sound of things... but hey, they can't expect him to drop everything! Even more annoyingly, he's not on the WCW card! Tag partner Ben Bassarab is booked in singles action - although that's a mixed blessing, as shown by the state of Ben's body when he staggers backstage after being steamrolled by 'Baby Bull' Leon White, a former football player with something of a Star Wars obsession. Day 44: Tuesday September 18th What a wasted trip! Rob is left off AGAIN, this time so that Bassarab can team with Bret Hart against Hercules Hernandez and Rip Morgan. Robbie is not amused. Especially when Morgan hears him complaining about the wasted trip, and laughs at him. Shades of the Bruiser Brody incident ensue - unfortunately with the same result. Robbie staggers away, lip cut open by Morgan, and screams at former power-lifter Frank Manley "What the hell are you looking at?" Manley's reaction "An English moron" does little to improve Robbie's temper, and he's soon having to be pulled away from Frank as well, although not before Frank had got a couple of nasty shots in to Robbie's stomach. A guy called Bearcat Wright also manages to get a shot or two in, and eventually Bobby Heffernan, one of the fed's top guys, grabs Rob around the neck and physically ejects him from the arena. Heffernan is one half of a team called the New Fabulous Kangaroos, which makes the experience even more humiliating. Somehow, I find it hard to believe Robbie will be getting much more work here.

[D. Boons Ghost]

You have to wonder what the bookers must be thinking, in regards to young master Brookside. It's been seven days since his last booking. Do they see a curtain jerker when they look at the kid? Are the smaller owners getting mad at Robbie's blowing them off for a shot at the bigger promotions? Are they 'testing' his resolve through the dry spell? Why in the world would they continually pit a Lightweight (and thats being generous) Super Junior against a Giant so often? If it was tough before, imagine how bad it will be when word gets back of Brookside's freakout in Australia! :) Great work, btw!

[Jaded]

Day 45: Wednesday September 19th Surprise surprise... Robbie gets a phone call from Larry O'Day, owner of WCW. Larry stresses that he has no problem at all with Robbie personally, but on the basis that half of his roster wants to kill the youngster, suggests staying away for a while - such as 30 years or so - may be the best thing to do. I think Robbie needs to get a few more bookings in Memphis and Florida from now on... Starting today, thankfully! Eight man tag opens things up; Robbie joins Ken Mantell, Canadian journeyman Leo Burke, and rookie Steve DiSalvo to face Dory Funk, Dr Tom Pritchard, and old friends Brickhouse Brown and Mike Davis. In the back, Robbie receives some good-natured ribbing about the previous day's fights, but things seem better than they have for a week or so. Match 25: Robbie Brookside, Ken Mantell, Leo Burke and Steve DiSalvo vs Dory Funk Jr, Dr Tom Pritchard, Brickhouse Brown and Maniac Mike Well, this one was okay but nothing more - Robbie started with Pritchard, Robbie doing his usual moves to wear down Tom's arm until he tagged Dory Funk in. Funk came in, and went to work on Robbie with big moves, slamming his head into the mat, connecting with a vicious running clothesline, then going for his spinning toe hold and texas cloverleaf. Robbie escaped from both those as Funk tried to cinch them on, allowing him to tag in Leo Burke. Funk tagged in Mike, and the action spilled to the outside, where the pair brawled for a few minutes. Mike tagged in Brickhouse, and Burke caught him on the top rope, crotching him four times. However, as the ref dragged Leo away from the corner, Brown slipped something from his tights, and used it to KO Leo as soon as the referee's back was turned, allowing Brickhouse to pick up the pinfall victory for his team. Day 46: Thursday September 20th Another Thursday, another night off for Robbie. In fairness to Carlos Flores, at least he lets Robbie know before he leaves for Mexico...

[Jaded]

Day 47: Friday September 21st Memphis tonight, and back in the ring! Robbie's booked here for the first time in nearly two weeks, as part of another big tag match - teaming with the Indian middleweight Gama Singh and brawler Gypsy Joe to take on Doug Gilbert, Juan Rodriguez, and Jim Neidhart. Robbie's been added to a mix which has been going a few weeks now - two weeks ago today, Singh and Neidhart teamed to beat Juan in a handicap match, but ended up arguing after that win. Singh then got Joe to team with him in a tag match and defeat Doug and Juan, but Neidhart charged down and made the save when the winners started a post-match beatdown on the losing team. And last week, in Calgary, Neidhart teamed with the Mongolian Stomper to take on Singh and Neidhart's brother-in-law, Keith Hart. Again Gama won, and he also beat Rodriguez in a singles match a few days ago here in Memphis. He definitely seems to have the upper hand in this feud, hopefully it will continue today. Match 26: Robbie Brookside, Gama Singh and Gypsy Joe vs Juan Rodriguez, Doug Gilbert and Jim Neidhart Joe and Doug start off, Joe quickly suplexing Gilbert. The ref gets knocked down in the early stages, and as he's recovering, Gypsy Joe manages to rake Doug's face against the ring ropes several times. Doug manages to take Joe down though, and tag out to Jim Neidhart. Neidhart comes in and hits a few forearms on Gypsy Joe, with Gama Singh yelling that he wants in to get hold of Neidhart again. Joe suplexes Neidhart, then chokes him, but instead of tagging out, sends the Anvil to the corner. The gypsy puts Neidhart on the top rope, but Jim kicks him away, then gets down, whips him to the ropes, and gets a running clothesline. He poses for a bit too long though, and Joe is up, smashing Jim's arm then locking on a bear hug and charging Neidhart back first into the corner. A brutal kick to Jim's stomach misses his mark, and the Anvil gets a full nelson on, then manages to tag in Juan Rodriguez. On the outside, Singh does not look pleased. Joe gets a suplex, finally goes over to tag. Singh steps back, allowing Robbie to go in there against the other high flyer. Robbie hits an arm wringer and a bodyslam; enough to make Juan decide to tag out. Doug Gilbert returns to the ring, and they trade moves for a couple of minutes until the ref goes down again - glass jaw? Robbie takes advantage of the situation to slip a pencil from out of his trunks and jab it into Doug's shoulders as he puts a hammerlock on - wow, different side of Rob there. He then drapes Doug's neck over the second rope, bounces off the opposite ropes, and sits hard on him, before hitting that slingshot kneedrop. The ref scrambles to his feet, in time to see Doug make a desparation tag to Rodriguez. Juan leaps off the top with a second rope dropkick, locks on the Rolling Romero, and Rob's left with no choice but to submit. Another so-so match for Robbie, he hasn't put on a really good one for about a month now, after having the great clash with Jack Hart and the epic 8-man that ended with him beating Haystacks just days apart. It's a strong card, however - in the top two matches Randy Savage beat Dutch Mantell, then challenged Jerry Lawler to a bout soon, before the Fabulous Ones beat King Kong Bundy and Kareem Muhammad in the main. Day 48: Saturday September 22nd As usual, it's a Saturday off for Robbie. As usual, I hit the shops. Less normally than usual, he seems to spend a lot of time eating - going to a steakhouse with a couple of the other wrestlers at lunchtime, then taking me for a meal at night. Maybe he figures he could do with a bit of extra weight when he's taking on guys like Haystacks. Day 49: Sunday September 23rd Florida show. No match for Rob. Blah.

[Jaded]

Day 50: Monday September 24th Memphis show. No match for Rob. Blah. Is this any way to celebrate your 50th day as a pro wrestler? Day 51: Tuesday September 25th Lawler's asked Robbie to stay in Memphis for the Mid-South Coliseum tonight, biggest show of the month! Robbie, Jim Neidhart, and Tony Falk team to go against Giant Haystacks, Ken Mantell, and George South. CWA, we love ya! Match 27: Robbie Brookside, Jim Neidhart, and Tony Falk vs Giant Haystacks, Ken Mantell, and George South It's the two Brits to start, but after Robbie peppers Haystacks with dropkicks, the giant tags out to South. Dropkick, knee drop, and he scatters as well, bringing in Mantell. Dropkick once more, Robbie is a house on fire! Up top, he comes off with a flying knee, then a second rope dropkick! Slingshot kneedrop follows, the crowd are cheering the high energy attack here. Robbie whips Mantell to the turnbuckle, then goes for a backflip dropkick, but Ken avoids it and Robbie crotches himself. He makes the tag though, and Neidhart is in. Mantell tags in South at the same time. South goes for a bear hug, but the Anvil breaks it, hitting George on the sides of the head with his fists. Driving South into the corner, he tries to ram his head into the turnbuckle, but the move is reversed, and South tags the giant back in. A headbutt followed by a big running body smash takes the giant down! Haystacks is up quickly though, pummeling Neidhart and then walking over him to tag South in again. South puts Neidhart in a single leg grapevine, which Jim breaks out of, but a shoulder tackle by Jim finds only air. Gorilla press slam by the Anvil is impressive though, but a second rope fist drop misses, and Mantell tags in. Brass knuckles punch takes Jim down, but somehow he kicks out! Falk makes the tag, is in hard, laying out Mantell and slamming him in the corner, then letting Robbie back in. Robbie dropkicks his opponent into the corner, following with a backflip dropkick and then using an avalanche splash for the first time! It looks like he might have this one... but he's overconfident, and goes for a somersault legdrop which only finds air! Haystacks tags in, stomp, chest walk, big splash, and Robbie's snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Pretty good match, but awful for Robbie to lose like that! The rest of the card is above average, the most memorable moment being Savage's ferocious demolition of 40-year old Ken Lucas, before he grabbed a mic and repeated his challenge to Lawler. Austin Idol retains his title against the masked Grappler #1, and Gama Singh beats Doug Gilbert in a continuation of the feud Robbie was involved in on Friday.

[Jaded]

Day 52: Wednesday September 26th Second match is as many days for Rob! He's also asked to be a bit nastier in the ring today, as he reforms his team from seven weeks ago with Lex Luger. They'll go up against Steve DiSalvo, an unused partner of Robbie's in the 8-man last week, and Scott McGee, son of Geoff Portz, a British wrestler who Robbie admired when he was even younger than he is now. Match 28: Robbie Brookside and Lex Luger vs Steve DiSalvo and Scott McGee Luger starts, gaining the advantage with a backbreaker then an elbow drop. Throwing Steve to the corner, he follows up with a repeated shoulder ram. More brawling follows, until Luger misses a forearm smash, allowing DiSalvo to hit a double axe handle then tag out. McGee comes in, and keeps Lex on the mat with some nice technical wrestling, until Lex manages to backdrop him over the ropes and tag Robbie in. Robbie gets a flying knee to the outside, then a dropkick, before rolling McGee back in and hitting a slingshot kneedrop. Another attempt misses though, allowing DiSalvo to tag back in. He hits a double stomp, a pair of big forearms, then a running elbow drop, but Robbie slips out of a torture rack attempt and rolls him up for two. A running clothesline from Robbie sends them both to the outside, Robbie diving off the apron with a super arm drag as DiSalvo gets to his feet. They fight back into the ring and Robbie low blows Steve, then puts on a leglock for the submission victory! Another okay match, if not up to the standards Robbie was setting early on in his career. Day 53: Thursday September 27th If it's Thursday, there must be a UWA card without Robbie's name on it... Day 54: Friday September 28th We get to the CWF show a little late (traffic problems!), just in time for Robbie to take on George South. A quick hello to all the guys backstage, and he's running out to the ring. Match 29: Robbie Brookside vs George South Knee lift by South, who then misses a knee drop, allowing Robbie to lock on the head scissors. Robbie hits a monkey flip, but misses a dropkick. Side headlock, top wristlock, whip to the ropes by South, Robbie ducks a clothesline. Rob with a suplex, picks George up, kick to the back of the knee. Puts on a hammerlock, wailing away on that right shoulder, then an arm wringer. Robbie drapes his opponent over the second rope, goes for a butt drop, but misses and crotches himself. South with a small package for 2, goes for a running dropkick, but Rob hits the drop toe hold instead. He sends South to the corner, but seems to bounce off when he tries a dropkick. Gets the butt drop this time though. Clothesline takes both to the outside. Dive from the apron misses, and South drags Rob back into the ring. Rob is whipped into the corner, and South hits a dropkick. South goes for a figure four, but Robbie kicks him away, and jabs him a few times before locking on an arm wringer and hitting 3 quick kicks. Slingshot kneedrop follows, then a springboard spinning kick, and Robbie gets the leglock he used on Wednesday for another submission win! Later in the card, Haystacks nearly gets the Heavyweight title from Lawler, only for Savage - who'd once again challenged Jerry - to run down and attack Lawler, causing a DQ victory for him, much to the giant's annoyance. Also, Ricky should've had a tag belt! With Robert Gibson injured at the hands of the Midnight Express in Mid-South earlier in the week, Ricky approached the Fabulous Ones to ask if one of them would team with him to take on the Grapplers in his scheduled tag match. The two flipped a coin, with Stan Lane winning, and Lane and Morton held their own for nearly half an hour, until Tony Anthony nailed Lane with two piledrivers to win.

[captainlou]

What's happening with Liverpool's favorite couple since John and Yoko?

[captainlou]

It looks like Robbie and Sarah have been kidnapped! We haven't seen them in a week.