We are APW Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/SeanQuartermainne_zps938aa934.jpg To me, the card looked decent. Ozfest 2013, the shining star in our schedule, and the start of new beginnings. God knows the two shows since Swoop left us in October sucked big-time, despite Sharkie establishing himself as the face of the company in McCarthy’s absence. The morale in the locker room was low – those that had declared that they’d never join RAW (or never be good enough to...) were starting to regret it now that they’d pulled ahead so far in the war. We weren’t that far off showtime. It was around midday, and we were opening strong with The Masters taking on the Duo at seven PM. We had a couple of new faces brought in to work with our younger players, people who would take the promotion forwards in the next few years. I thought everyone was getting along just fine and I was about to head out to muck in with putting out the chairs and equipment for tonight, when the new article caught my eye. It was just a little thing, an inconsequential ‘stirring’ story on a slow wrestling news day. But anything titled “APW: TIME FOR A CHANGE?” kinda draws your attention when you’re the head booker. APW - Time For a Change? By Richard Rubah We’ve all heard of Australian Pro Wrestling. Well, you probably haven’t, but that’s because a lot of my readers don’t go for anything outside the US borders. You may have heard of RAW, the only company in the world owned and run by a TV company. If you can even call them wrestling. But I have a soft spot for underdogs, for the plucky tryhards that fill this scene we all love. And APW is perhaps that – the ultimate underdog. But there’s an interesting development going on in the APW locker room, comparable to what we can expect to happen within Supreme Towers in the next few years. It’s something USPW should be going through, but never will. It’s time for a change within the APW, and that change is, to pardon the cliché – out with the old, in with the new. Let’s look at their roster, shall we? Current Australian champion is Maurice Jackson – Mojax to anyone in the know. 23. Built like a tank. Generally brilliant. And who have they got him feuding with? Lanny Williams. Debonair David Peterson (why don’t they just call him DDP? That’s a far cooler name). Old guys who stand no chance and are only there to put him over. Alright, fine. That’s their secondary title anyway. The main event, the shining lights. Alexander Banks. Legitimate badass with a kickboxing background. Slightly wimpy Superkick finisher, but the Commonwealth champion after their champion ditched them (think of the Toronto Screwjob of SWF fame, but with the champion actually LEAVING with the belt). Who’s he currently taking on? 13 year pro Harry Simonson. It’s clear who is going to win each and every time the face off. What bothers me is how young and exciting the roster could be. They have the behemoth, Nathan McKenzie. He’d be a monster in RIPW and crack the SWF roster in weeks. He’s 23. He’s a multiple champion, but he’s being ignored. There’s Stan Standish, stuck with a terrible nickname (Spiffy, really?). But he plays a weaselly rich guy better than almost anyone on the planet. But time and time again, these guys are used to put over the old, the lame, the tired. What’s the saying? Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses. Australian Pro Wrestling would probably just put those that fit those three categories over the youngsters. Just ditch the old and broken down jerks that seem to populate this roster. APW isn’t going to survive the year if it doesn’t. I’ve been in this business since I was 27. It’s been twenty long years, but they’ve been good to me. As have some of the people ripped apart in this article. I close the browser window and rest my head in my hands – we’ll deal with the egos hurt by this AFTER the show. And that’s where I’m sat when I hear the very firm rap of knuckles on the door. There’s no waiting for an answer as it immediately thuds open, and I’m presented with four pretty pissed off faces. “Q, we need a word.” http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/LannyWilliams_zps72a49c3d.jpghttp://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/HarrySimonson_zps7d89eba8.jpghttp://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/DebonairDavidPeterson_zpsfbd0142f.jpghttp://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/BooSmithson_zps5d8c735c.jpg http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
We are APW Posted June 2, 2013 Author Share Posted June 2, 2013 http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg All four stomped in. 63 years worth of wrestling experience glowered across me from the other side of my desk. Even Boo looked massively upset, and although I know he’s battled his demons in the past, I thought we’d crossed that bridge long before. Dave looked angry, which was fairly usual for him, and Lanny had his phone out. You can say what you want about these veterans, but they’re as tech-savvy as anyone out there. Lanny was jabbing an angry finger at the screen as he spewed out streams of obscenity. “These ****ing ****s, Sean. I know we’ve joked about there being a lack of respect in this ****ing business, but holy ****. I’ve had them go for me for my drinking in the past, the bastards, but this is something else.” I held up a hand to placate him. “Lanny, it’s a dirtsheet report. It means no-“ “But it DOES mean something,” Harry interjected. “You know how much McMinister pays attention to anything written on the internet.” That I couldn’t deny. James J McMinister, while a businessman and a true fan, was definitely in ‘mark’ territory. “The ****ing internet is nothing but ****ing trouble,” Lanny continued, “And now they’re saying we’re not good enough to be at the top of this promotion. I’ve worked my arse off here for ****ing years. And you know what these ****s on the internet call me? “The Quiet Man” of the APW. Well I’ve had enough – me and Dave ain’t gonna be quiet any more.” Dave nodded, and crossed his arms across his chest. “We.... we... we have an id-d-dea,” spoke up the quietest voice in the room. Boo rarely spoke due to his stutter, but he was widely respected backstage. Hell, we fired Horne for picking on him one too many times. “We go stiff,” Dave stated. “We take a leaf out of the Combat Zone and those flippy little Japanese buggers over the pond. We show that the youngsters simply cannot keep pace with those of us who have grown up doing this.” I blinked. “Stiff? As in pure? As in “going to kick your ****ing head in?”” “Well,” conceded Peterson, “Maybe not that far. I’m almost 40. But we turn it up a great deal.” “We’ve talked with the boys,” said Harry. Simonson had always been a locker room leader, and I trusted him a great deal even if we hadn’t seen eye to eye on his pushes of recent. “They’re happy with the idea that we turn up the intensity a bit. Get the message out that if you want silliness, you got to ZEN. If you want to be bored, go to DIW. If you want to celebrate someone just because they can deliver a killer line but move like a toddler crapped themselves in the ring, we send them to RAW.” Lanny grinned, a wide, relaxed smile that we only tend to see from him when he’s in the bar. “And if you want to see the best ****ing wrestlers in the whole pissing Southern Hemisphere, you ****ing send them right here.” http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
We are APW Posted June 3, 2013 Author Share Posted June 3, 2013 http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg Word spread like wildfire around the locker room. People were seriously fired up, and none more so than the veterans. But, surprisingly, it was some of the younger workers that were seriously excited. The Rising Suns looked happier than they had for years. How would I explain the change to McMinister? I wasn't going to. Yet. We often called him the Superfan backstage - he'd be in his ringside seat two hours before the doors even opened, usually working on his tablet but otherwise ready. I was confident that this was going to work. That the fans were going to lap up real, hard wrestling. And if the fans love it, James would too. Showtime. http://i1318.photobucket.com/albums/t653/weareapw/APW_zpsd76bde0b.jpg Quick picks for APW's Ozfest 2013 Maurice Jackson vs. Saul Rubennick (APW Australian title match) The Forbes Agency (Christopher Gerard and Stan Standish) vs. The East Coast Rebels The Duo vs. The Masters Nathan McKenzie vs. Richie Fox Lone Shark vs. Scottie Hamstead Alexander Banks vs. Harry Simonson (APW Commonwealth title match) Okay, so if you've been reading, thanks! This is a new account for me (thanks to horrific internet stalkers causing problems), but I've run numerous APW diaries in the past - if you've read them then thanks, again! This one is the first time I've altered the product, but only in a very small way to increase the realism and modernism of the programme, to mean the workers are graded more on performance than popularity. Other than that, and a Maurice Jackson face turn in the dark match, the game world is as it comes out of the box The predictions will run for 4 PPVs/events, then the winner will get a choice that will impact the storylines ahead of us. Hopefully you're on board - I will typically follow my usual pattern of publishing the show on a Sunday, and the card on a Wednesday, but I aim to have the show up tomorrow or Wednesday to get into that pattern. Any comments, questions or criticisms are very welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnightnick Posted June 3, 2013 Share Posted June 3, 2013 Maurice Jackson vs. Saul Rubennick (APW Australian title match) The Forbes Agency (Christopher Gerard and Stan Standish) vs. The East Coast Rebels The Duo vs. The Masters Nathan McKenzie vs. Richie Fox Lone Shark vs. Scottie Hamstead Alexander Banks vs. Harry Simonson (APW Commonwealth title match) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CageRage Posted June 3, 2013 Share Posted June 3, 2013 Quick picks for APW's Ozfest 2013 Maurice Jackson vs. Saul Rubennick (APW Australian title match) The Forbes Agency (Christopher Gerard and Stan Standish) vs. The East Coast Rebels The Duo vs. The Masters Nathan McKenzie vs. Richie Fox Lone Shark vs. Scottie Hamstead Alexander Banks vs. Harry Simonson (APW Commonwealth title match) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michgcs Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Glad to see you're back, man, and back in APW, too? Sweet! Maurice Jackson vs. Saul Rubennick (APW Australian title match) The Forbes Agency (Christopher Gerard and Stan Standish) vs. The East Coast Rebels The Duo vs. The Masters Nathan McKenzie vs. Richie Fox Lone Shark vs. Scottie Hamstead Alexander Banks vs. Harry Simonson (APW Commonwealth title match) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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