NYCW 2024- Something Something Something Old School.

[1PWfan]

PWR Radio presents…an interview with Hugh Dansigny

 

 

Greg Sluchinski               Hugh Dansigny 

 

 

 

“A special interview tonight, folks, as I’m joined on the podcast by veteran colour commentator, interviewer, manager, writer…anything I’ve forgotten?”

 

“I mean, you could include father of four and die-hard fan of The Quebec Cuirassiers but I’m not sure that’s relevant, eh?”

 

“True enough…ladies and genetlemen, he’s a NYCW legend, Hugh Dansigny.”

 

“It’s good to be here Greg, I’ve been listening to the show since Ed Penn used to broadcast it on USA Sports Radio back in the 90’s.”

 

“Now your career in wrestling stretches back over twenty years and across half a dozen different companies but let’s go all the way back to the beginning- October 1995, Rapid Pro Wrestling in Pittsburgh.”

 

“Yeah, that’s the one”

 

“Now, you’re famously Canadian…”

 

“French-Canadian at that, and proud of it.”

 

“So I owe it to our fans to ask, how the heck did you end up making your debut in Pittsburgh?”

 

“Long story short? I’ve moved down to Pittsburgh with my first wife whilst she was studying there and Preston Holt, who owned Rapid Pro, he saw my old public cable show…”

 

“That would be This Week in Wrestling with Hugh, Hughes and Huey.”

 

“That’s the one- anyway I was only with Rapid Pro for about a year. I was gone by Christmas 96, went back home to Canada and joined up with Vicky in North of the Border Pro Wrestling. It was more my scene, proper serious wrestling rather than RPW’s insider-joke stunt show guff. If that’s your thing, fine, but it ain’t mine and it never will be, eh.”

 

“You’ve been friends with the Stones for years, right?”

 

“Since me and Vicky met in Junior High, yeah- honestly, I think I’m closer to her and Duane than I am to my own family. I’m not as close to the other Stones- Jeremy and Dan are good people but I’m their sister’s best friend, y’know? And I don’t really talk to Edd much but we’re just different people, it’s nothing dramatic.”

 

“Not to mention being married to Victoria’s Sister-in-Law Tamara McFly”

 

“That too, though it was actually Sarah Stone who introduced us.”

 

"Isn't that true for all the Stones?"

 

"Pretty much, yeah- she introduced Jeremy and Dana, Dan's wife Elaine used to be her college roommate, Sean and Vicky met through her...honestly, now she's married Steve DeColt I half expect her to start setting up his brothers too."

 

“Now we’re on a limited timeframe here we’ve got to skip ahead in your career five years- March 2002 you arrive in New York  City Wrestling and you’ve been there ever since. What brought you to NYCW? It wasn’t exactly a major outfit back then and you’d had quite a career by then.”

 

“I mean, yeah but also not really? Sure, I had a great three years with North of the Border but by the end I was burned out on all the travel and it took years to really find that spark again. I had other jobs, sure, but it was mechanical stuff, just picking up a paycheck. As for what actually got me into NYCW, that’s down to Tammy- We’d been dating for a couple of years and were getting pretty serious but I was down in Florida back then, holding a mic for USPW, and the travel between there and Canada was just the worst.”

 

“I’ve heard that so many times talking to wrestlers, the number one relationship issue in wrestling has to be the travel”

 

“Honestly I’ve always hated being on the road anyway so I would’ve been happy to just move back to Halifax and stay there, maybe work with the North of the Border office or something. Tammy, though, she tells me ‘there’s a great company in New York you’d be a fit for, take a look and see what you think’. God knows how she knew about NYCW but I check ‘em out, they were running a community centre in Jersey City and you know what? She was absolutely right, which granted is not really a surprise considering the whole history of our relationship. That show was everything I wanted wrestling to be, traditional old-school values, proper storytelling but none of that melodramatic sports entertainment guff and no stupid loop-the-loop 680 corkscrew shooting star moonsaults or whatever, just genuine impactful action that you could really believe in.”

 

“You’ve been with NYCW for 20 years, you’ve been a commentator, an interviewer, you’ve hosted your own talk segment and even served as the company’s principal authority onscreen. What’s been your favourite role and where do you go next?”

 

“I’ve always seen myself as a commentator first and foremost. Sure I’ve done other stuff but I’m at my best on the broadcast crew, especially back when I was working with Rock Downpour. He was one of the best friends I’ve ever had- certainly the best outside of the Stone family- and god, I still miss him every day.”

 

“I’m guessing that’s why you took a break from commentary the last few months, after Rock passed away last year.”

 

“Too right- no offence to Ron South or the Ernie, they do a great job and I always like working with them. But when Rock died I just…I needed to step away from the desk and let it not be a me-and-Rock space for a while, you know? Call it part of the grieving process or whatever, eh.”

 

“What about your least favourite?”

 

“I’ve never liked managing- I’ll do it and I’d like to think I’m pretty good at it but it’s not really my thing. Especially in New York- Larry put me with The Boys From The Yukon for a couple of years and it just…no offence to those guys, they're good people and a great team but we never really clicked. Same with working as an authority figure, it's just not something I’m that good at, eh. I’ve done it, in New York and for a while in AAA too, but I always felt like somebody else was a better fit.”

 

"I'm surprised to hear that, I always enjoyed your stints as Commissioner."

 

"I mean, it wasn't the worst thing I ever done but the character I portray on screen, the whole 'Halifax Hobogblin' identity, it's not meant to have any power. That whole persona, the character I play, he's a fast-talking troll, a guy who lights the fuse and runs away from the consequences. You play the guy in charge, cleaning up the mess is kind of your whole deal and I could never make that work in my head. It's why I'm better suited as an interviewer or running The Den."

 

“Since you brought it up I’ve GOT to ask about Dansigny's Den- wrestling has a long history of talk show segments, we’ve all seen Paul Huntingdon’s Ivory Tower or Online with Jaime Quine…”

 

“I always liked Eric Tyler’s segment back in CGC, what was it called?”

 

“The Schoolroom.”

 

“That was it! I drew a lot of inspiration from it for The Den, kind of inverting everything Tyler did. The Schoolroom's kind of formal and neat, The Den's a total man-cave hangout. Eric harangues guys and bullies them, I grease up and play the stooge.”

 

“What made you come up with the segment? Alright you’ve done a lot of interviews going back to the start of your career but where did the idea of your own talk show come from?”

 

“Honestly? I just figured we could use something like that in New York. This would’ve been around late 2005, early 06, we had good talent but not a huge number of great talkers, particularly in the midcard. So, yeah, I grabbed a couple of armchairs from my house, Tammy found the maple leaf lampshade in a Brooklyn Fleamarket, it just worked, eh? Honestly, I’m a commentary guy first and foremost but a lot of my favourite individual moments on NYCW shows have come from the Den. Grandmaster Phunk challenging Whistler for the first time, Lee Wright’s debut, the original set getting destroyed by Old School Principals and The Ring Generals…

 

“I’ve always heard a rumour that that was just so you didn’t have to throw away the old furniture, is that right?”

 

“Pretty much, yeah, it was busted as all get-out by then and it saved us a journey to the dump.”

 

“Now my producer is making a lot of move-along gestures behind the glass so we’re going to have to keep going and get to the big story of this interview. Christmas of last year it was announced that you’re taking over from Steve Flash as NYCW’s head booker- how did that come about and what’s the plan going forward?”

 

“The way it was explained to me is, we’re just freshening things up behind the scenes. Steve’s still part of the creative team, he’s still in all the meetings, but Larry wants a new perspective at the top, eh. As for going forward, New York’s New York- I’ve been here 20 years, I’m not interested in changing the world or completely rewriting the company’s image. This company will always be about old-school traditional wrestling- all steak, no sizzle.”

 

“Okay, so business as usual in New York, then?”

 

“Pretty much- we’re going to be bringing in some new names, freshening up the roster a little bit, but nothing major. The big emphasis is more on spreading the load backstage- Ernie’s been a leader in the locker room as long as I’ve known him but there’s more we can do to keep things peaceful there and help our youngsters develop. Plus we’re talking to a lot of people about expanding The Confederation of The Territories, bringing in some new blood to freshen things up.”

 

“Any hints on who that might be?”

 

“Well, I’ll tell you about one thing about the Confederation- the big aim is to go international again, bring in some of the best indies from Canada and Mexico.”

 

“We are all the way out of time I’m afraid, so on that note we’ll end this interview with a reminder that NYCW’s next show, Rush Hour, is scheduled for Sunday 9^th January at Thorpemills Gym in Yonkers. After the break we’ll be running down our usual preview of all the upcoming shows on the US indy scene…”

 

***

 

Card for NYCW Rush Hour:

 

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

 

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

 

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

 

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

 

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

 

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

 

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

 

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

 

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

[Wrestling Machine]

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

[Tiberious]

Card for NYCW Rush Hour:

 

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

Hard to bet against the champion for the first show; especially since canonically he only just won the belt a month ago.

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

I don't really see Freedom Eagle as being quite at the main event level, while Tennessee is one of your top guys.

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

Hawkeye seems to have gotten way better in this version of the date, while Andrew Harper seems more of a steady hand than anything else.

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Ray's a much better wrestler, but I think he's mainly here to put over Richie and make him look good.

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

I really want to pick the DiMeo family as I like Sal a lot more then Brutus, but the Casey Bros are the tag team champions and you're setting up their number one contenders in another match, so them losing here would kind of muddle the title picture.

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

I like the Boys from the Yukon so I'll pick them to take it here.

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

Cory Underwood & Rory Brookes are both rookies, so it's a coinflip between Animal and Doll. I'll predict Animal has the match won, but New York Doll steals it.

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

SMD is still pretty raw, but he has great monster heel potential. Geoff Borne is a useful guy in the midcard, but one of those main uses is in putting over the guys you actually plan to push as stars.

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

I like Machine Gun Marino, but Texas Hangman is the kind of guy you strap the rocket to.

[SIser187]

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

No reason to switch right now.

 

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

Probably your best heat seeker.

 

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

Hawkeye gets a W.

 

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Playing it cautiously.

 

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

Going with the Family. Think a lot of fun can be had.

 

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Just picking my favorite here.

 

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

Going with Animal here who, like Doll is NYCW through and through but Harker's done a lot.

 

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

Borne is the classic JAG. A lifer perhaps but he'll be around and help groom the next generation and keep matches watchable and nothing more.

 

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

Just going with the guy I like more personally.

[alpha2117]

Card for NYCW Rush Hour:

 

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

Both are good but Stranger cheating to win has a lot of appeal to me as I think he's the best option as champ on this roster

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

By the same logic as above I hae Eagle going over for a run at Masked Stranger's belt.  If Wiiliam goes over here then I would expect McManus to retain in the main event.

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

Again logically Hawkeye makes the most sense especially if Masked Stranger ends up going over

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Dont particularly like either of these guys but Riggins is the best choice for now.

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

Meh ... logic suggests the DiMeo's go over so you can spin the story out with matches in future and the DiMeo's are a little less popular so need the win if this is going to be ongoing.

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

I'm a mark for the Historian.

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

He's a jerk but lets face it he's got to be used while you have him because it's likely one of the bigger companies snatches him eventually

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

He's not a jerk but as with Underwood you need to get something out of him before he's snatched up.

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

Both these guys are good but giving Hangman some momentum out of the gate makes sense.

[KyTeran]

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

[Shifty425]

Card for NYCW Rush Hour:

FOR THE NYCW EMPIRE CHAMPIONSHIP

Riley McManus © vs. Masked Stranger

Freedom Eagle vs. Tennessee William

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins ©

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family (Sal DiMeo, Luca Sacramoni & Vito Pirelli)

TAG TEAM ELIMINATOR- WINNER EARNS TITLE SHOT AT EMPIRE STATE

The Past Masters (Sandman Winks & The Historian) vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

Geoff Borne vs. Super Massive Destroyer

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

[1PWfan]

Show will be going up tomorrow evening, folks, so there's time for any last-minute predictions!

[1PWfan]

NYCW Rush Hour

Live From Yonkers, New York

Sunday 9^th January 2022

Audience: 375

 

The Show

 

“Goooood Evening Grappling Fans and welcome to a packed-out Thorpemills Gym here in Yonkers, New York for NYCW Rush Hour! I’m Ron South, joined as always on commentary by Ernie Turner and Hugh Dansigny.”

 

“We got a great show for you tonight fans! All three titles are on the line, Tennessee William takes on the rising star of Freedom Eagle and not one, not two but three hot new acts will be making their NYCW debut tonight!”

 

“All that plus I’ll be welcoming Sal DiMeo and his Family into The Den to talk about their ongoing issues with The Casey Brothers and Brutus Milano! Fans, there’s no better wrestling in the country than the kind you get right here in NYCW and we welcome everyone joining for the first time on Wrestleworld.com for this bumper event!”

 

“It’s time to take it to the ring for tonight’s first match, so let’s hand over to Jan Vessey and get this show underway!”

 

*

 

Texas Hangman vs. Machine Gun Marino

We kicked things off with one of our big debutants; Texas Hangman is a guy I’ve got plans for (I wouldn’t say big plans, mind, but plans) and this was his chance to introduce himself to the NYCW faithful. Overall I’d say it was a success; his character went over well (I’d gotten the creative team together to hammer out some ideas for his gimmick and that definitely helped) and whilst Marino was definitely outperforming his opponent name value still matters here and Hangman’s a completely new name to the Tri-State scene. Still, if this is the worst we have tonight I’ll take it, and Hangman at least benefited from the win after he put Marino away with a Choke Slam.

Winner: Texas Hangman Match Rating: 35

 

*

 

The Past Masters vs. A Pair of Aces (Denny King & Crockett Tubbs) vs. The LA Stars vs. The Boys From The Yukon

If there’s one thing Larry and I have always agreed on it’s the need for a strong tag division, and this match really showed the plus point of that; this one really kicked things up a notch from the opener, even allowing for the comparative lack of name value that Sandman and The Historian brought to the table. Admittedly there was a biggish gap in performance between the newbies and most of the others (Crockett wasn’t great either but he’s held together with glue and hope at this point) but it wasn’t like anyone was bad and time and exposure will close that gap up nicely. King and Tubbs were the first team to go- they’re both on the downswing of their careers and not such a fixed unit anyways- at the hands of Sandman Winks, who trapped Denny in the Deep Sleep and forced the submission. Naturally the veterans responded with a vicious beatdown that left both the new guys on the back foot and easy pickings for Mort, who put The Historian away with the Tree-Feller. That just left the Stars and the Boys, and after a few more minutes of high-quality action (The Stars were easily the best workers in the match and Whittaker and Mort have the best chemistry in the whole division) it was the Canadians who came away with the win.

Winners: The Boys From The Yukon Match Rating: 44

 

*

 

Animal Harker vs. The New York Doll vs. Cory Underwood vs. Rory Brookes

This was a filler match to give Cory and Rory a chance to develop in the ring with two of our best midcarders, and it turned out pretty well. Harker’s Japanese commitments make him difficult to build around- we’ve already moved half our shows around this year to keep him available- but he can absolutely get it done in the ring, and Doll’s a fixture in New York and always delivers in the ring. As for the two prospects, Cory’s apparently a rising star with lots of potential but he needs to a) develop just a little bit more in the ring, and b) stop being such a sleazeball piece of cr@p backstage- I’m not opposed to pushing the odd problematic character if they’re worth it but Cory isn’t at this stage. As for Rory, he’s got bags of charisma and a welcome tendency to bring free drinks but he couldn’t sell hockey to a Canadian and needs a lot of training up before he’s ready for a feature match (though I will say his narcisstic douchebag character is a perfect fit for him). As the lowest name on the totem pole he did the job here, going down to Harker’s Stump Piledriver.

Winner: Animal Harker Match Rating: 38

 

*

 

The not-so-dulcet tones of ‘Macho Man’ ring out as Richie Riggins makes his way to the ring, his every flex (and there are many of them) filled with smug self-satisfaction and Cheerleader Nicki cheering on him. The Body gets in the ring and grabs a mic.

 

“Now we’ve all seen the posters, we all know who’s SUPPOSED to be out here challenging for sweet sweet Trixie, my Tri-State Regional Title belt, but let’s be real here. Ray Snow? We all know you’re scared of me, just like everyone else in that locker room. In fact let’s be honest here, it’s not just the boys in the back that are scared of The Body. Every single one of you in the crowd, every man, every woman, every child, you either want to be me, you want to be with me or you want to stay off my bad side. So just do me a favour, start the count and let’s get this over with ‘cos there’s a gym out there with my name on it”

 

Naturally it’s at this point that ‘Taking Care of Business’ announces the arrival of Ray Snow, who storms the ring and immediately starts throwing punches at Riggins as the crowd cheers on and Arnie Plummer rings the bell to start the match.

 

Ray turned face to help balance out the roster- we had too many heels and even with bringing in three new babyfaces we still needed an extra guy moving across to keep things even. As for the actual angle, we ran it over two parts (first the promo then the fight) and both worked out pretty well- Richie’s character and mic skills do a lot of the work for him and that helped carry this segment.

Rating: 34

 

*

 

Ray Snow vs. Richie Riggins

I want to come back to this match; thus far the Tri-State title’s kind of floated along but we could definitely build a feud around a match this good. Not that that’s much of a surprise, Richie’s no workhorse but he’s got a great character and plenty of charisma, so when you put him with a workhorse like Ray Snow (who barely knows which end of a mic you talk into) you’ve got a storyline that sits up and works.  As for tonight’s result, it’s too early to pull a title switch but I wanted Ray to stay strong so he won via DQ. Recognising that Snow had all the momentum Richie resorted to a blatant low blow right in front of Arnie Plummer, forcing the ref to disqualify him and allowing The Body to get out of dodge with his title reign intact.

Winner: Ray Snow Match Rating: 40

 

*

 

Super Massive Destroyer vs. Geoff Borne

Destroyer’s an interesting character- on the one hand he’s really not that great a worker, but on the other the guy’s got genuine star potential and the exactly the kind of personality you’d want in a top guy (seriously, he’s one of the most likeable people in the whole locker room). Ordinarily I’d just throw him into the ring with a talented veteran like Geoff a whole bunch to train him up, only it turns out that him and Geoff really don’t have any chemistry and the match came off looking pretty awkward as a result. Okay, so most of it was just ‘Geoff tries for something spectacular and bounces off Destroyer’ but the timing was always just a bit off and someone was always a step out of position and having to adjust on the fly which hurt the believability. It wasn’t too bad, though- Destroyer may not be that good in the ring but he’s a master of the squash match- and eventually the big man put Borne away with the Choke Bomb (which I might get him to change: it’s a solid move but a bit too close to Hangman’s)

Winner: Super Massive Destroyer Match Rating: 32

 

*

 

As ‘The Spirit of Radio’ plays the ring crew deposit a pair of frankly alarmingly comfy recliners and a standing lamp with a maple leaf lampshade in the ring as yours truly gets in the ring.

 

“Alright, listen up ya dummies! It’s time for my favourite part of the show where I get to kick back, relax and really start some trouble in the back- I’m The Halifax Hobgoblin Hugh Dansigny, a.k.a. the second best thing to come out of Canada after The Quebec Cuirassiers…”

 

The crowd boos heartily at this obviously true fact; clearly they’re still sore over the Cuirassiers knocking the Rangers out of the playoffs in four games.

 

“…Yeah, boo all you like, your boys didn’t score for like three straight halves. This is Dansigny’s Den and my guests tonight, you know ‘em, you love ‘em or you sleep with the fishes, Sal DiMeo and The DiMeo Family!”

 

The Godfather Waltz plays as the family make their way out, with Sal flanked by the big bodies of Luca and Vito and Marino lurking in the background. Naturally it’s Sal who take the chair whilst the others flank him, looking imposing.

 

“Buonasera Signor Dansigny, it is a pleasure to join you here, though I will confess, I think we in La Famiglia are used to a better kind of den than you offer us here.”

 

“Budget’s tight and I don’t pay for this with my own money. Now, you’ve been having a lot of problems just lately, your…what should I call them? Your associates?”

 

“If you refer to Vito and Lucky Luca there my capos, my most loyal brothers in La Famiglia and the most…professional, shall we say, of my associates.”

 

“Well whatever you call them, Vito and Luca lost the Tag Team Titles to the Casey Brothers back at Titans of Wrestling. How do you feel about that?”

 

“I don’t like this word ‘lost’- you lose watches, purses, even on occasion cars or television sets. We did not lose the belts, they were stolen from us by a pair of spazzatura butcher’s boys. Were it not for Family Business, I think their father’s business would have reason to regret their actions. But La Famiglia, we have our business, we talk to associates in Puerto Rico, in Argentina, they don’t want to hear of us starting a war over such things.”

 

“Are you sure? It seems to me, you think these belts were stolen you have an obligation to take them back however you can.”

 

“And make no mistake, Signor Dansigny, the Tag Team Titles will be returned to us in due course. But The Caseys, they are competitors, they are Irish, the ways of La Famiglia are not theirs and their punishment will be a matter of business. No, what truly disappoints me is their alliance with Brutus Milano.”

 

“It must be disappointing- Milano’s proudly Italian-American and here he is, fighting against you and allied with a pair of boys that took your titles.”

 

“Indeed, and I will say only this. Signor Brutus, I understand your feelings, I do. They are from Brooklyn, you are from Brooklyn, you grew up on the same streets, you know the same people, they feel like your family. But they are not family, they do not share your blood, your ancestry, your culture. That you share in common with us, with La Famiglia, and in respect of our shared roots I extend to you this offer.

 

“Walk away, Brutus Milano, stop involving yourself in this matter of honour. It doesn’t have to concern you, it is business between ourselves and The Caseys. You need not come to harm, you can walk away from this whole affair with no ill will from us or any of our…associates, shall we say. But this offer? This is a one-time opportunity. If you continue to involve yourself in matters that are none of your business? I will not guarantee your safety.”

 

“Strong words there from Sal DiMeo. Fans, we’re just minutes away from that match so stick around, I’m getting out of here!”

 

The day I can’t sit in The Den and hold that crowd in the palm of my hand is the day I retire- well, it isn’t because the Hobgoblin ain’t walking away ever, but you get my drift. This couldn’t have worked any better, if I’m being honest.

Rating: 37

 

*

 

Brutus Milano & The Casey Brothers vs. The DiMeo Family

I’ve put Brutus into the Casey Brothers feud with the Family for a couple of reasons; firstly I hate 2-on-3 storylines and wanted to even the sides up a little bit, secondly Brutus is basically the beigest act in NYCW and can’t be trusted on his own. Okay, so he’s never been quite bad enough to be worth getting rid of but he’s not good in the ring, doesn’t have any charisma and mic skills to speak of and his intangibles aren’t anything to write home about. Playing third man for the best tag team in the company seems like a decent slot for him, especially as Chuck’s a great worker and Tully is a specialist in the tag division (if we ever spin them off into solo acts I could see Brutus teaming with Tully as a decent babyface unit). As for the heels, Sal might be the roughest-looking 25 year old I’ve ever seen but he’s got charisma and talent to spare and the Italian-Americans are problematic (Luca in particular is a grumpy little s*d who nobody really likes) but solid workers who fill their role really well. Victory here went to the heels to set up future matches; Vito got the win with the Shoulder Breaker (not a great finish, maybe change that one too) on Chuck.

Winners: The DiMeo Family Match Rating: 41

 

*

 

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Andrew Harper

Hawkeye’s one of our biggest rising stars and might even be in the running as our number two babyface- it’s between him and Freedom Eagle and Calhoun’s got the edge in charisma and star quality. That’s why we put this match so high on the card; filler singles bout it may be but both of these guys are core players in the upper midcard and this marked the transition to the top bouts. Okay, so Harper’s not so much of a big star, and his stamina could be an issue going forward (most of our matches run about 12 minutes- both Andy and Brutus struggled with even that), but he was still pretty good and this was as good a match as we’ve had on the show. I’m sure you can guess who won this bout between a rising star and a career gatekeeper but just to be clear; Hawkeye in 11:51 with the Home Run.

Winner: Hawkeye Calhoun Match Rating: 45

 

*

 

After the bell’s rung Hawkeye gets a microphone from ringside.

 

“Masked Stranger, I know you’re back there getting ready for your match tonightbut I wanna talk to ya! Get out here and face me, if you’re brave enough to look me in the eye!”

 

Shockingly enough Stranger does make his way to the ring, so Hawkeye continues talking.

 

“Now you and I both know what happened last month at Buffalo Bash. I beat you fair and square and what do you do? YOU JUMP ME FROM BEHIND AND BEAT ME DOWN WITH MY OWN BAT! That ain’t a thing a man forgets, especially not after just a month.

 

“Now, we both know that NYCW is due to welcome the Confederation of the Territories World Heavyweight Champion in March, and the only thing I want more than kicking your @ss is a shot at that belt. So I figure, why not combine the two? You agree to this, I go back to Larry Vessey and we make this official- Empire State next month, you and me in the ring and whoever wins? We go on and fight for the World Title!”

 

Hawkeye’s a great talker but struggled with improvising- it didn’t so much come off in his dialogue but the timing was off and there were a couple of bad pauses where he was figuring out what to say.  

Rating: 27

 

*

 

Tennessee William vs. Freedom Eagle

The countdown to Tennessee’s departure to the big leagues starts here, folks- this performance reminded me of Roger Cage or Grandmaster Phunk just before they went to Supreme and USPW. That does complicate things a little; on the one hand he’s the best we’ve got and someone I’d love to build around, on the other hand why bother if he could leave any day now? I guess the best thing to do is put him in the ring with up-and-coming stars like Eagle and get some rub on them before he puts someone over on the way out. Eagle probably won’t be that guy- good as he is he isn’t there just yet- but he’s a key part of our semi-main event, the kind of guy who maybe isn’t quite championship material just yet but is a plug-and-play challenger  that never feels out of place in the top matches. Give him a year or two and some development and…well, the way these things go he’ll probably be somewhere bigger and we’ll be making do with has-beens that weren’t popular enough for USPW or TCW. In any case Tennessee took the win here, catching Eagle with the Devil’s Crossroad and getting his feet on the ropes for added leverage.

Winner: Tennessee William Match Rating: 53

 

*

 

Riley McManus vs. Masked Stranger

Our main event was maybe a step down from Tennessee/Eagle but I’d still call it very satisfying and a good end to the night. Stranger’s a great worker and comes off like a real star every time he gets in the ring and whilst he’s not the most charismatic worker in the company he makes up for that with sheer in-ring talent. As for Ri-Mac, he doesn’t have Tennessee’s charisma but he’s a heck of a workhorse and plays off his manager Fern really well. Okay, he’s aging a bit (which is weird as he’s not that old and doesn’t have the kind of demanding background in Japan that usually wears people down) but I’d still put Riley as the closest we’ve got to a babyface franchise and the best guy we’ve got to build around. We also worked in an appearance by Tennessee here- he’s feuding with Riley and came out with a guitar after the action spilled to ringside, nailing McManus with El Kabong and leaving him laid out at ringside. Fortunately for the champ by the time Stranger could get him back into the ring and go for the pin Ri-Mac was able to rally and kick out, blazing a hot comeback before putting the challenger away with the Slingshot Suplex.

Winner: Riley McManus Match Rating: 51

 

 

Overall Rating: 48, a solid starting point to build from and well above what we need to stay on Wrestleworld. In post-show news we gave plaudits to Ri-Mac and Williams and gained pop all across the east coast and Canada, especially our neighbouring areas (New England, the Mid-Atlantic and out west around the Great Lakes- nothing at home but hey, small steps). No injuries either, which is the best news.

[Wrestling Machine]

Solid show! Curious to see how'll bring COTT in this diary!

[1PWfan]

With the show in the books let's have a look at the predictions:

 

Wrestling Machine: 6/9

Tiberious: 6/9, and I only realised how muddled the tag rankings had gotten when I was putting the next show together otherwise I'd have done it the way you predicted.

SIser187: 7/9

alpha2117: 4/9

KyTeran: 6/9

Shifty425: 6/9

 

So,  Slser187 wins this round, and I'm going to bring back a conceit I've used in the past- the winner of each month's predictions can ask a question of any member of the NYCW roster, wrestler or non-wrestler, and I'll answer it before the next show goes up. It gives me a chance to show off some of the personalities in NYCW that don't get a chance to cut promos and things like that. Also, expect more DQ finishes going forwards, I don't use them all the time but they're very much a part of my toolset so keep that in mind with predictions.

 

Next post will be going up probably tomorrow morning BST. 

[alpha2117]

Fun show.

[SIser187]

To Texas Hangman: "Welcome to New York. You're 1-0 right off the gate. What is on your immediate agenda in terms of what you want to accomplish with this long running company?"

[1PWfan]

Just to say that technical issues have delayed the next post (nothing serious, the 'net was down at home this morning and I won't be able to post 'til I get back from work later) but for now here's the response to Slser187's question:

 

To Texas Hangman: "Welcome to New York. You're 1-0 right off the gate. What is on your immediate agenda in terms of what you want to accomplish with this long running company?"

 

Texas Hangman: Seems to me a man's got to earn his rights to fight for the gold in New York, so I guess I'll be earning my spurs beating up whoever they put in front of me. After all, sooner or later everybody faces The Hangman. 

[1PWfan]

From the diary of Hugh Dansigny:

 

Two of our guys are off to Japan- Stranger’s signed a touring deal with Burning Hammer and LA Star #1’s off to WLW (note to self; check if that Yakuza thing’s over and done with, don’t want any of that stink around our talent). Good for them both but it might make travel costs a problem if they’re still over there by February. Also, why take just the one Star rather than both? I mean, okay so #1’s probably better than #2 but the team’s better than either of them individually.

 

***

 

CZCW has struck a developmental deal with EILL down in Mexico. Fair enough, it never did MAW any harm and EILL are a decent company- little more sports entertainment than I like my lucha but hey, when OLLIE went it was clear which way the fans there were going. All the same, it doesn’t do the Confederation any good if our top shows are both feeder leagues for the majors.

 

***

 

Stranger asked for a pay rise- we had him on our usual 30 bucks a pop deal but he’s worth about four times that. We compromised, upped his rate to 98 bucks a show, more than I wanted to pay him but less than he’s probably worth. Hopefully the Wrestleworld money helps make up for that.

 

His tour with Burning Hammer also came to all of one win and a bunch of losses, all involving Frankie Perez (even his one draw was a match against P-Dawg). Still better than Star #1, though, who came back from WLW with a grand total of four matches and one win, which came on the pre-show of a touring event.

 

***

 

Overall losses in January came to about eighteen hundred and sixty dollars, which is honestly better than I’d expected. Factor in upgrade costs so we could sign the deal with Wrestleworld and we should be turning a profit by the end of spring, give or take an economic collapse or the industry going in the toilet.

 

***

 

Card for NYCW Empire State:

 

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

 

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

 

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

 

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

 

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

 

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

 

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

 

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

 

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

 

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

[Tiberious]

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

Hawkeye has more momentum coming off his win last month so I pick him here.

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

Williams is probably your top heel, so him getting the win to set up a title match makes a lot of sense.

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Probably wrong here, but I just like the Boys a lot better.

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

I see a lot more in Sal than in Brutus.

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

Snow & The Stars are a much higher class of worker than the DiMeo underlings.

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

Borne and King are both coming off losses and I don't really see Richie losing so early anyway.

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

I am going to once again foolishly pick the New York Doll to steal the win in the multiman.

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

Could be a swerve and the Local guy is actually a star, but I don't think so.

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

Hangman continues his winning.

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

The Historian isn't very known in your area yet, but you mentioned that Crockett's age and injuries were catching up to him so I think he's an acceptable sacrifice to get over a guy you actually want to push.

[Shifty425]

Card for NYCW Empire State:

 

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

 

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

 

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

 

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

 

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

 

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

 

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

 

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

 

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

 

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

[alpha2117]

Card for NYCW Empire State:

 

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

With Masky wandering off for a bit giving Hawkeye the win makes a bit of sense

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

William pinning Harker would be the right call to keep heat in the Main Event title challenger picture

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

I dont see the champs dropping the belt right now.

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

Meh

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

With one of the LA Stars wandering off shortly it sort of makes sense for them to do the job on the way out.

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

Meh

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

I maintain strapping a rocket on him whilst you can is the best way to make money

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

Ahhh good old A.Local-Talent a fine experienced worker but no Freedom Eagle

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

Hangman could be great and giving him a nice push earl makes sense

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

I remain a Historian mark

[SIser187]

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

Let's go with the babyface here.

 

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

Feel like the heel side could use it more.

 

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

I'll go with the tag title retainment though I'm tempted by thinking a draw would be interesting here.

 

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

I know he's over but oof.

 

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

It feels like Ray is being really set up for a Tri-State Regional program so his side could use the win.

 

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

No brainer win.

 

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

Destroyer kills three dudes.

 

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

Freedom for all!

 

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

Another straightforward result.

 

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

Yeah, this feels right.

[KyTeran]

WINNER WILL CHALLENGE FOR THE COTT WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

FOR THE NYCW TAG TEAM TITLES

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

FOR THE NYCW TRI-STATE REGIONAL TITLE

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

[Wrestling Machine]

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper Harper eats the pin

The Casey Brothers © vs. The Boys From The Yukon

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins ©

Sandman Winks vs. Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. The New York Doll

Freedom Eagle vs. A Local Talent

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

[1PWfan]

Show will be going up tomorrow night folks, so there's still time for predictions- apologies for the long delay (or what feels like a long one), I'm up to KONY and it's kind of kicking my @ss on write-up.

[1PWfan]

NYCW Empire State

Live From Jersey City, New Jersey

Saturday 5^th February 2022

Audience: 430

 

The Show

 

“Goooood Evening Grappling Fans and welcome to NYCW Empire State! I’m Ron South, joined as always on commentary by Ernie Turner and Hugh Dansigny.”

 

“It’s going to be a heck of a show tonight Ron! Riley McManus gets back in the ring with the man he beat for the Empire Championship, Tennessee William, and they both brought company! The Tag Team and Tri-State Regional belts are all on the line tonight, and in the main event Hawkeye Calhoun will be taking on Masked Stranger for a shot at the Confederation of the Territories World Heavyweight Championship!”

 

“You know, Ernie, it was a show right here in White Eagle Hall that made me a fan of this company and it’s always a pleasure to return to Jersey City- possibly the first time that sentence has ever been said. Thanks to the great staff here at White Eagle Hall for making us so welcome and hello to everybody joining us on Wrestleworld.com!”

 

“It’s time to take it to the ring for tonight’s first match, so let’s hand over to Jan Vessey and get this show underway!”

 

*

 

Egon Merowitz vs. Freedom Eagle

Egon’s a guy I’ve got my eye on as a future prospect so I brought him in tonight for a quick squash and a chance to evaluate him. On that basis, he’s definitely a project; admittedly he wasn’t on his game tonight (probably thanks to nerves) but even so he wasn’t particularly special and certainly wasn’t a match for the likes of Hangman or Underwood. Fortunately he was just there to feed to Eagle, one of our top guys and somebody who could really do with a proper feud to give him some focus- I might drop him down into the Tri-State scene but he just gave up that belt and it might feel like a step back. Whatever the case he was never gonna lose this one.

Winner: Freedom Eagle Match Rating: 28

 

*

 

Cory Underwood vs. Super Massive Destroyer vs. Sandman Winks vs. The New York Doll

This was basically filler to give all of my youngsters some work but it turned out pretty well all the same. Not that that’s a surprise, really, these four are all pretty reasonable and even if Destroyer isn’t actually that good he’s got the intangibles to make up for it. As for the others, Underwood’s got promise but isn’t somebody I’m ready to start building up just yet, Sandman’s a great worker who’s only problem is name value (we kept him looking strong here so he can keep building that up) and Doll is somebody who probably deserves to be closer to the top of the card than he is but hey, not everybody can be a star and Doll’s not the kind of guy to make a fuss about it anyway. Ultimately I gave this one to Destroyer to help build his monster credentials; he put Cory away with the Choke Bomb whilst Sandman and Doll brawled at ringside.

Winner: Super Massive Destroyer Match Rating: 35

 

*

 

Texas Hangman vs. Rory Brookes

Another squash match, though the aim here was more elevating Hangman than scouting out a prospect. The big guy’s absolutely somebody I want to build into a top guy but there’s a long way to go yet and right now the aim is to build him up to a part of the Tri-State scene; I’m planning to put together a proper storyline for that title in a couple of months once I’ve gotten the pieces together and hopefully by then the Hangman’s at the level where we don’t have to worry about overusing him. As for Rory, he’s at a similar level to Cory as a worthwhile project with obvious upside but a lot of work to do before he’s ready, thought at least Rory isn’t a sleazebag douchebro (I mean, he’s kind of a douchebro but the fun kind that’s good to have around at parties). Hangman dominated this one, putting Rory away at 7:41 with the Choke Slam.

Winner: Texas Hangman Match Rating: 26

 

*

 

Once again the comfy recliners and standing lamp come out as I get in the ring, this time as ‘Time Stand Still’ plays (we have the band recording a different Rush song every month, because they are awesome) for Dansigny’s Den

 

“Alright, it’s time for the best part of the show- apart from the bit when I get to leave Jersey City…”

 

Cheap heat is the best kind of heat because you don’t have to work hard for it.

 

“I kid I kid, Jersey City’s my second favourite place in New York- after everywhere else in New York. I’m Hugh Dansigny, this is Dansigny’s Den and my guest tonight was voted ‘most likely to bite off more than he can chew’ by his high school yearbook committee, Hawkeye Calhoun!”

 

John Fogerty’s Centerfield plays (well, Jan Vessey’s band’s cover of it) as Hawkeye makes his way to the ring.

 

“I’d say it’s good to be here Hugh but that’s more about these great fans than you.”

 

“I’d argue but I’m pretty sure even my wife likes you more than me. So tonight you’ve got a chance at a shot at the World Heavyweight Title but to get there you’ve got to get past Masked Stranger. What do you reckon are your chances?”

 

“Y’know Hugh, everybody remembers Stranger kicking my @ss at the Buffalo Bash but what people seem to forget is that I’d beaten him fair and square first. Now, I ain’t dumb, I know fair and square isn’t something Stranger endorses a whole bunch but the way I see it? I’ve beaten him once, no reason I can’t beat him again.”

 

“Bold words from a man who supports the Mets.”

 

“Yeah? When was the last time a Canadian baseball team won the World Series?”

 

“Sorry, I only follow the good sports, like Curling and Hockey- which reminds me, who’s got the Stanley Cup right now?”

 

Okay, that wasn’t entirely scripted but c’mon, Canadian teams have won the last four Stanley Cups in a row, I’d gloat about that even if I wasn’t playing a heel.

 

“Let’s be real, though, Hugh- I know Stranger’s good, there’s a reason he’s in this match same as I am. Do I think I can beat him? Yes, absolutely. Will I beat him? That’s harder to say. He’s tough, he’s skilled and let’s face it, he’s gonna cheat no matter what I do to stop him.”

 

“It’s like I always say, good things come to those who break the rules. And on that note, I’m gonna call time on the Den for tonight before somebody jumps somebody and it all turns into a brawl, I don’t wanna have to pay for new furniture again.”

 

There’s something special about being able to completely improv a segment and the other guy matching you the whole way. Hawkeye’s almost as likely to get snapped up as Tennessee (he’d be a perfect for USPW) but whilst he’s here he’s probably the best talker we’ve got.

Rating: 46

 

*

 

The DiMeo Family vs. Ray Snow & The LA Stars

This was a decent enough match but I’m not sure I like the way it was booked. I had the DiMeos going over- they’ve got the big storyline, after all- but there was clear air between them and their opponents in terms of performance and it didn’t favour Marino and The Italian-Americans. Okay, so there’s more to wrestling than that but when Ray and the Stars are so good it feels like I need to do something with them and maybe they should have the slot that the Family does. Admittedly I’m hoping to get Ray settled into the Tri-State title feud once I’ve got everything prepped for that one, but the Stars might be our top tag team workrate-wise, and it feels weird for them to be just drifting like this. Still, right now the DiMeos are the ones with the feature feud so they took the win, Vito scoring the pinfall with his new Lariat Clothesline finisher.

Winners: The DiMeo Family Match Rating: 44

 

*

 

Geoff Borne vs. Denny King vs. Richie Riggins

I should’ve switched this match with the last one in the running order- this was good but nothing on the six-man. That shouldn’t have been a surprise, though; much as I like these guys none of them are really a patch on Snow or The LA Stars. Richie in particular is all gimmick and charisma, a great gimmick, sure, and I like him where he is, but he’s not a workhorse and does his best work partnered with someone who can make the running. Good as Denny and Geoff both are they’re neither of them in the kind of shape to do that; Geoff in particular is suffering the effects of his high-flying style and I might suggest he move towards something less physically demanding than that down the line. Still, this was good enough to be getting on with and provides some ideas for the Tri-State feud down the line (we’ve got slots open and nobody ruled themselves out tonight). Richie got the win over Geoff with his finisher, a Press Slam followed by a Big Splash that he calls the Body Bag.

Winner: Richie Riggins Match Rating: 40

 

*

 

The Historian vs. Crockett Tubbs

Can anyone remember why I put this one so high up? Honestly my match flow is all over the place tonight. Still, this was a pretty good match- it helped that Tubbs and Historian have good chemistry and matched up pretty well. It’s a good thing, too, as Crockett’s body remains an issue- I’m not ready to completely job him out but he’s on the downswing of his career and is really here to put guys over more than achieve anything in his own name. As for Historian, he’s not ready in terms of name value to be a key player but is ideally suited to what I want NYCW to be both in terms of style and character. The best way to make up for that name value is to put him and Sandman in a good solid feud to build them up so Crockett stole the win here, using a fortuitous distraction from his partner Denny to remove a turnbuckle bad and drive The Historian into it face-first before locking in the Subway STF to claim the victory.

Winner: Crockett Tubbs Match Rating: 39

 

*

 

Brutus Milano vs. Sal DiMeo

This was okay (which was about what you could hope for, given Brutus’ limitations) but I can’t help but feel disappointed by this one; in creative Crockett and Steve had come up with this idea to build the storyline by having Sal trying to recruit Brutus to his side during the match and it didn’t really work. Maybe if we’d prioritised story-telling over action we might have gotten the idea across better but as it is I don’t think the fans really took in what we were trying to do. Still, the chemistry was good here and Sal continues to look like a potential star even as Brutus leaves me wondering what precisely anyone really sees in him. You can probably guess who I booked to win but just to be clear; Sal got the win via his Powerbomb finisher after distracting the ref long enough for Luca to come in and lay Brutus out with the Dimeo Family’s trademark length of chain.

Winner: Sal DiMeo Match Rating: 41

 

*

 

After the match Sal and Luca are joined by Vito and Marino for a vicious beatdown on Brutus, pummelling him into the mat before setting him up to Sleep with The Fishes (choking a guy out with the chain- whenever they’ve done it in the past we’ve used it to write guys out for a few months). Fortunately the Caseys are able to make the save, pelting down to the ring and sending the DiMeos packing.

 

I was pleased with how this went; Brutus is not a natural victim in these kind of angles but given that the Caseys are the tag champs and he’s barely more mobile than a brass statue he was the best one for the role.

Rating: 34

 

*

 

The Casey Brothers vs. The Boys From the Yukon

If I’d thought about it, I’d have tried to transition better from the last angle into the match (although where we’d have found time for that I do not know, we’re up to our time limit as is) but hey, it’s no deal breaker and this was a great match anyways. Not that that’s a surprise; Whittaker and Mort are a great unit and the Caseys aren’t far behind (they may not have the natural chemistry of the Canadians but hey, not everyone can). This is a match we will absolutely see again; once the Caseys have settled things with the Family then The Boys are going to be their next major feud for sure. For now, though, there’s still matters with the DiMeos to settle so Vito interfered for the finish, lining up Tully for the Lariat only to miss and take out Whittaker when Tully ducked. The elder Casey cleared him out of the ring and then picked Whitehorse up for the Gutwrench Backbreaker to retain the titles.

Winner: The Casey Brothers Match Rating: 44

 

*

 

Riley McManus & Animal Harker vs. Tennessee William & Andrew Harper

I knew going in this would be our best match- Tennessee and Ri-Mac are our top guys for a reason, after all- but it didn’t have the stakes that Stranger/Hawkeye did so it went in the semi-main slot and will almost certainly overshadow the final match. Not that I’m complaining, really, I’ll take a match with this level of quality any day of the week; Riley and Tennessee are both great workers, and whilst Harper and Animal aren’t anywhere near their level they’re both really good workers who didn’t look wildly out of place in this match or drag things down into the gutter. As for the finish, I agonised about it right up to showtime but eventually went with a win for the faces; Tennessee had been jaw-jacking with his former tag partner Animal throughout the match and finally lost it completely towards the end, charging him at ringside and getting caught up throwing fists. That left Andrew Harper one-on-one with the champ and there was only one way that was gonna end; Slingshot Suplex, 1-2-3.

Winners: Riley McManus and Animal Harker Match Rating: 52

 

*

 

Hawkeye Calhoun vs. Masked Stranger

Sure enough, this didn’t quite match the last match but I wouldn’t call myself dissatisfied; this was a great match and if Hawkeye hadn’t been having an off-night this might have even managed to match it’s predecessor. On reflection that shouldn’t really be a surprise; Hawkeye’s an amazing babyface who’s great at working the crowd, Stranger’s a supreme workhorse who isn’t exactly lacking in star quality himself, throw the two together and you’ve got a match that really works. As for the finish, I went with Stranger- it was always the plan but his work with Frankie Perez in Burning Hammer should add some spice to their match next month- and to keep the storyline going I made it a dirty finish; with Hawkeye on the offensive Stranger distracted the ref by removing a turnbuckle pad and then threw powder in Hawkeye’s face, blinding him long enough for Stranger to lock in the Cobra Clutch and choke him out.

Winner: Masked Stranger Match Rating: 50

 

 

Overall Rating: 48, about the same as last month but more than good enough for me (though apparently we overused Machine Gun Marino; ah well, not a big deal). Plaudits went to Hawkeye and Stranger, whilst our popularity gains went nationwide and over into Canada. Most importantly, though, we saw some major gains at home in the Tri-State.

[1PWfan]

Apologies for the slight delay in posting this one- I write up my shows first then come back to do promos later and I forgot to write up The Den until last night- now let's have a look at the predictions:

 

Tiberious: 4/10

Shifty425: 7/10

Alpha2117: 6/10

Slser187: 5/10

KyTeran: 8/10

Wrestling Machine: 7/10

 

So by my count (and it took a lot of checking, why did I think a 10 match card was a good idea?) KyTeran wins and gets the fan question this month, to any NYCW star you wish- though please don't do Texas Hangman again as my attempt to do a Clint Eastwood pastiche probably sucked.

 

I'd say when the next post will be up but let's face it, I'd be wrong anyway.

[KyTeran]

To Tennessee William:  Do you feel that you will have a better chance of winning against McManus one on one, then you did teaming up with Andrew Harper?