Scottie Posted January 4, 2022 Author Share Posted January 4, 2022 Welcome back! hell yes, glad to see this revived Thank you both! I lost access to my computer for a few months, but really wanted to at least get through he first year of game time. I don't know whether I'll go further than "Night of WRESTLING" - if I do, it'll have to be a more condensed version, but I will see how I go. Thanks for the support Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGN91 Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 Glad you're back mate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie Posted January 6, 2022 Author Share Posted January 6, 2022 <div style="padding: 15px; border: 3px solid #000000; margin:10px;background: #d2d3d4; max-width:60%;box-shadow: 0 1px 2px " ;"=""> 5 December 1997 - Osaka, Japan <img src="https://i.imgur.com/FS5MjDO.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> <img src="https://i.imgur.com/2exCxXZ.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> With commentary by Keiji Takeda & Sosa Morri _______________________________________________ 3 VS. 3 MATCH Blackjack Robbins, Rick Sanders & Shawn Gonzalez vs. The New Rebellion (Natsu Miyamae & Noriyori Sanda) & Hiroyasu Gakusha The opening match of PGHW’s biggest show of the year pitted the trio of fresh gai-jin wrestlers against a talented team of home grown talents. Robbins & Sanders spent much of the tour teaming together, while the 26-year old Gonzalez found himself in matches involving some big names - including Kitoaji, Kumasaka & Miwa. This was a short, spirited bout, with the tag team specialist Natsu Miyamae putting in the best performance. He stood up to his taller opponents, and picked up the win for his team with a pinfall over Rick Sanders. The New Rebellion (Natsu Miyamae & Noriyori Sanda) & Hiroyasu Gakusha defeated Blackjack Robbins, Rick Sanders & Shawn Gonzalez (7:02) with a Backdrop from Miyamae to Sanders. [55] _______________________________________________ TAG TEAM MATCH Club Dread (Craig Prince & Takesi Umehara) vs. Team Electric (Mito Miwa & Yoshimi Mushashibo) This tour was a tough baptism for Craig Prince & Takesi Umehara, who found themselves on the receiving end of a number of defeats as Club Dread struggled throughout the tour. Here, they faced the exciting young Team Electric, who in recent months had developed a heated rivalry with Prince & Umehara’s comrades, Wright & Diaz. This was another short bout - and perhaps too short for the crowd’s liking, given how prominent Miwa & Mushashibo had been this year. Still, it was an entertaining contest as the young Japanese duo prevailed despite the dastardly tricks of Umehara - Miwa nailing Prince with the Pride Bomber as Mushashibo prevented Prince’s partner from interfering. Team Electric (Mito Miwa & Yoshimi Mushashibo) defeated Club Dread (Craig Prince & Takesi Umehara) (12:10) with a Pride Bomber from Miwa to Prince. [62] _______________________________________________ 4 VS. 4 MATCH Dragon Squad (Dragon Agakawa, Harumi Okazawaya, Mamoru Nagahama & Sotatsu Sarumara) vs. Pacific Predators (Amiri Ngala & Java), Koichi Kajiwara & Ninsei Tanuma One could be forgiven for thinking the next bout was just a way to get some names onto the show, but Dragon Agakawa’s Dragon Squad spent most of the tour battling Nobuatsu Tatsuko’s new squad, Forged in Fire. With Tatsuko facing off against Koji Kojima, that left his hired guns, the Pacific Predators, to team up with Ninsei Tanuma & Koichi Kajiwara. There wasn’t much too this bout, though the best exchanges were had between Amiri Ngala and Mamoru Nagahama. Dragon Agakawa, who many expect will retire early next year, got in some good offence for his team, but found himself uncharacteristically distracted for much of the match as he quarrelled with Ngala & Java. That exposed young lion Sarumara, who was torn in half by a Spear Tackle from Java for the pinfall. Pacific Predators (Amiri Ngala & Java), Koichi Kajiwara & Ninsei Tanuma defeated Dragon Squad (Dragon Agakawa, Harumi Okazawaya, Mamoru Nagahama & Sotatsu Sarumara) (10:44) with a Spear Tackle from Java to Sarumara. [47] _______________________________________________ HISTORICAL JAPAN TITLE Nobuatsu Tatsuko © vs. Koji Kojima Coming into his 29th defence, “The Iron Man” Nobuatsu Tatsuko was no doubt feeling confident after seeing his Forged in Fire stablemates taste success. But he was facing the exciting masked prospect, Koji Kojima, who was intent on making his second shot at the Historical Japan title count. After winning the inaugural Historical Japan Cup, Kojima showed incredible promise throughout the tour, as he caught a series of opponents in his Crossface finisher. With his mentor Dragon Agakawa at ringside, Kojima appeared confident of his chances. But Tatsuko, a technical master in his own right, was always going to be a different prospect altogether. The match was slow and, to some, a surprising let down; the pair going just under twenty minutes but never seeming to get out of first gear. Kojima in particular looked nervous and struggled to match Tatsuko’s clean grappling and crisp strikes. While he went close on a couple of occasions to locking in the Crossface on Tatsuko, the impressive champion ultimately proved too much - finishing him with a Blind Kick for a pinfall. Nobuatsu Tatsuko © defeated Koji Kojima (19:45) with a Blind Kick (29th defence). [60] _______________________________________________ <img src="https://i.imgur.com/3CIGOYN.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> <img src="https://i.imgur.com/top76Yp.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> After the bout, the Historical Japan champion looked to show Kojima some respect by extending his hand. Kojima initially looked hesitant - and with good reason too, as Tatsuko then slapped his hand away and spat at him. The masked Kojima was livid, but found himself restrained by Agakawa who implored his star to keep his cool. But it was a costly decision - Agakawa turning to remonstrate with Tatsuko, only to be struck with a Blind Kick of his own! The champion retreated quickly (and happily), as a furious Kojima was left to tend to his stablemaster. [63] _______________________________________________ TAG TEAM MATCH Club Dread (Dread & Raymond Diaz) vs. T.O.P. Team (Danger Kumasaka & Hayate Hasegawa) Next up was the return of Dread, the Elite Series winner who had dominated PGHW’s biggest rivalries and best matches throughout the year. He was teaming up with his fellow Club Dread member, Raymond Diaz - the 21-year old had been thrust into a position of leadership this tour, and it’s fair to say struggled. In the opposing corner, the PGHW match-maker, Danger Kumasaka, was teaming with fellow veteran Hayate Hasegawa. The two fell short in the final of the Elite Tag Series as T.O.P. Team, but had spent much of the tour tormenting the second string Club Dread team. Despite falling short twice in Glory Crown shots, the shine hadn’t come off Dread. While Diaz dominated the opening stages of the match, he soon tagged in his leader who immediately imposed his size and strength advantage over Hasegawa. He clearly hadn’t lost a step - and, indeed, appeared to have benefited from his time off. But T.O.P. Team refused to be totally outdone, and soon the game Kumasaka took the fight right up to Dread with some almighty chops. Kumasaka won’t have forgotten that he faced off against Dread in singles action at this same event last year, and he took his chance to attack the gai-jin monster. Despite their fight, the sheer size of the Club Dread duo would ultimately prove too much. After engaging in a spiteful exchange with Kumasaka (both physically and verbally), the young Diaz continued to grow in confidence as he bullied Hasegawa. The veteran Hasegawa tried his best to work his way back into the match, but fell to a massive Choke Slam from Diaz Club Dread (Dread & Raymond Diaz) defeated T.O.P. Team (Danger Kumasaka & Hayate Hasegawa) (12:38) with a Choke Slam from Diaz to Hasegawa. [65] _______________________________________________ GLORY TAG CROWN Codebreakers 1996 (Eisaku Hoshino & Eisaku Kunomasu) © vs. Yodo Nakane & Shuji Inukai In the penultimate bout, the fiery young team Codebreakers 1996 looked to make their third defence of the Glory Tag Crown against the former champions, Yodo Nakane & Shuji Inukai. The story heading into this bout focused on the circumstances in which Nakane & Inukai lost the titles, following an injury to Inukai in July. While Nakane looked to regain the titles alongside Danger Kumasaka at “Night of WARRIORS”, he fell short - leading to Codebreakers 1996 becoming the third Glory Tag Crown holders. This bout was a doozy, and worthy of its status as a co-headliner at “Night of WRESTLING”. Nakane & Inukai were, as usual, full of heavy punches and powerful slams, while Hoshino & Kunomasu spent most of the early stages on the back foot. The champions, though, soon found their way into the match. Their tactics were clear: tag regularly and keep up the pace, particularly against the elder statesman in Yodo Nakane. From the apron, Inukai seemed to grow impatient, willing Nakane on as the veteran was worn down by his younger opponents. Eventually, Nakane ducked under an attempted clothesline from Kunomasu - and sent him crashing into the ground with a side suplex. Inukai soon got involved and the match started to ebb towards the challengers. It was now Kunomasu on the back foot, struggling to keep the energised Inukai at bay. But as Inukai went for his Untouchable Lariat, Kunomasu listened to his partner Hoshino’s warnings and rolled out of the way. Some of the best action came between Hoshino and Inukai, as the two exchanged heavy blows and exciting offence. But as a high octane match passed the twenty minute mark, it was the veteran Nakane who found himself involved in the finish - weathering a barrage of strikes from Kunomasu, before Hoshino struck with the Godzilla Plunge to complete a decisive win. Codebreakers 1996 (Eisaku Hoshino & Eisaku Kunomasu) © defeated Yodo Nakane & Shuji Inukai (20:51) with a Godzilla Plunge from Hoshino to Nakane (3rd defence). [75] _______________________________________________ GLORY CROWN Hito Ichihara © vs. Koryusai Kitoaji That brought us to the main event of the evening - and arguably the most hotly anticipated match in PGHW’s history. This time last year, Ichihara bested Kitoaji in a classic to become the 2nd Glory Crown champion. Since then, the pair went to a time limit draw twice in the Elite Series and fell just short of making the final in the Elite Tag Series as Honor Guard. With both men in their forties, there was a real question as to whether they had another classic match in the tank. The start was slow and tentative, with both men trying to feel their way into the match but clearly knowing each other’s tricks incredibly well. It was the challenger Kitoaji who moved first, muscling Ichihara in the corner and hurling him across the ring by the collar. Taking advantage of his greater height and weight, Kitoaji continued to bully the champion in the opening stages. But in his fifth defence, the champion soon fought back - landing some searing open hand chops to Kitoaji’s chest and buckling him with some brutal kicks to the knee. The match continued to build slowly - but ferociously. Neither man was leaving any avenue unexplored, as Ichihara continued to chop away at Kitoaji’s legs, while the challenger looked to wind Ichihara by focusing on his ribs. A series of brutal knees to the midsection had Ichihara coughing and spluttering, and allowed Kitoaji to assume a position of dominance. As the match drew on, so did the desperation of the two competitors. Kitoaji thought he nearly had Ichihara with a vertical suplex, and Ichihara also thought he had Kitoaji with a running lariat. The offence was stiff and relentless, and as the minutes ticked by the crowd grew more and more torn between the two favourites. With Kitoaji vulnerable, Ichihara made the biggest move of the match - trying with all his might to land the Head Drop Suplex. But the damage to the midsection was causing him clear pain, and he wasn’t able to lift Kitoaji up. Hobbling, Kitoaji tried to take advantage - but was levelled with a lariat which put both men on the ground. Ichihara was doing all he could to put the challenger away, and eventually sought to strike again with the Head Drop Suplex. This time, Kitoaji landed on his feet and levelled Ichihara with a devastating Roaring Elbow. Instead of covering, Kitoaji crawled to the corner and willed himself to his feet - waiting for Ichihara to rise. As the champion stumbled to his feet, Kitoaji used the remaining power in his leg to land another Roaring Elbow - landing on top of the champion for the pinfall victory. Koryusai Kitoaji defeated Hito Ichihara © (42:04) with the Roaring Elbow - Title Change (Failed 5th defence -> 3rd Glory Crown). [75] _______________________________________________ <img src="https://i.imgur.com/WQ89Cwe.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> <img src="https://i.imgur.com/KHgEUnD.jpg" alt="" width="75" height="75" /> As Kitoaji was helped to his feet by the referee, confetti started raining down. The new champion looked emotional - and even moreso as the legend Sadaharu Jimbo made a rare appearance. Jimbo praised both men for an exceptional main event, and congratulated Kitoaji. There was a moment of awkwardness as Ichihara stumbled over to Kitoaji holding the Glory Crown. But after a brief moment of intensity, Ichihara nodded and handed the title over to Kitoaji, allowing the new champion to celebrate to end the show. </div> <div style="padding: 15px; border: 3px solid #000000; margin:10px;background: #9cd2e6; max-width:60%;box-shadow: 0 1px 2px " ;”=“">PGHW “Night of COURAGE", 05.12.1997 (JSV2) Osaka-jō Hall 16,000 Fans - Super No Vacancy 448,197 Viewers (0.59) [73] The New Rebellion (Natsu Miyamae & Noriyori Sanda) & Hiroyasu Gakusha defeated Blackjack Robbins, Rick Sanders & Shawn Gonzalez (7:02) with a Backdrop from Miyamae to Sanders. [55]Team Electric (Mito Miwa & Yoshimi Mushashibo) defeated Club Dread (Craig Prince & Takesi Umehara) (12:10) with a Pride Bomber from Miwa to Prince. [62]Pacific Predators (Amiri Ngala & Java), Koichi Kajiwara & Ninsei Tanuma defeated Dragon Squad (Dragon Agakawa, Harumi Okazawaya, Mamoru Nagahama & Sotatsu Sarumara) (10:44) with a Spear Tackle from Java to Sarumara. [47]Historical Japan Title: Nobuatsu Tatsuko © defeated Koji Kojima (19:45) with a Blind Kick (29th defence). [60]Club Dread (Dread & Raymond Diaz) defeated T.O.P. Team (Danger Kumasaka & Hayate Hasegawa) (12:38) with a Choke Slam from Diaz to Hasegawa. [65]Glory Tag Crown: Codebreakers 1996 (Eisaku Hoshino & Eisaku Kunomasu) © defeated Yodo Nakane & Shuji Inukai (20:51) with a Godzilla Plunge from Hoshino to Nakane (3rd defence). [75]Glory Crown: Koryusai Kitoaji defeated Hito Ichihara © (42:04) with the Roaring Elbow - Title Change (Failed 5th defence -> 3rd Glory Crown). [75]</div> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.