David Mantell

Vader with technical + shoot skills like Thesz.

Bumped up in memory of Mr Hammill as on the British thread. Not his first France appearance either although not on TV. (Finlay's second French TV match)

Not a rhetorical question. Why did the lighter weights die off in America?

Talking of my family out Here I asked. No knowledge. Halperin's retirement match in '73 was just before my sister's in-laws . It does mention on Wikipedia that he ran an opticians chain. This is true, I have seen branches of Optica Halperin around before.

Just had a brilliant idea while relaxing in the swimming pool at Jerusalem's Inbal Hotel in the Mediterranean sunshine today. What if promoters sold Bathing Room Only tickets and allowed fans to turn up, change into swimwear and watch the matches from in the water?

Not really. Even someone like Tommy "Jack Dempsey" Moore was happy to work with Kidd. It was considered a breakthrough when Kidd became a star in England - there had previously been a lot of resentment among the lower weights regarding the commercial preferences for heavies. A common saying in the British locker room s back there as Bees do the work/Drones get the honey. Lightweights have the skil/ Heavyweights get the money." Then Kidd really broke through that particular glass ceiling and Johnny Saint later followed him through the cracks. What I wonder is what went wrong with lighter weight wrestling in America? There was George Bother in the early years of the C20th, he later referreed Caddock- Stecher and ran legendary shooter gym Bothner's Gym in New York. After that you get the odd name like Ad Santel or Benny Sherman but by the start of the 30s there was virtually nothing left below Light Heavyweight and that title was also exiled to Mexico in the late 30s.

Ditto these. Rest in peace Eddie.

RIP Eddie "Kung Fu" Hammill. Bumping these up in his memory.

Just a quick one to even things up, the Reslo Battle Royal on the Wrestling Madness videotape. It ends up with Tony and Danny Vs Ravishing Robbie Hagen Vs Drew MC Donals. Tony goes and the heels beat up on Danny til he elimins first Drew then Hagen.

Okay, here's what went down the previous evening at the Heumarkt Dirty Dan teams with a man he once faced and pinned in a 1987Daddy :tag, Mad McDonald the Ultimate Chippendale against a firework bearing Ulf Herman and Joe Joe Lee (relative of Kwik Kick, Sammy and, er Bruce.) Kilted Mick is the ref. Fairly generic action with Ulf in. Apparently German fans like to sing Old McDonald Had a farm. Lee comes in and karate kicks everything in sight. Danny scores the first fall, Ulf gets the equaliser on Drew. In the decider, Danny is choking Ulf on the mat when Mick From Doncaster grabs him by the hair and throws him out the ring. Danny at ringside makes the challenge. So that's how it happened.

Eddy Weiss Vs Roger Delaporte gets off to a lively start with Roger jumping Eddy from behind and Eddy fighting back including somersaults just to confuse and annoy Delaporte - a tactic that works as he storms out of the ring in a huff only to slip back in and sneak attack Eddy again! And so it goes on with Eddy a the technical "souple" one, even doing the distinctive French backflip off a top wristlock - and Delaporte as the cowardly crumb heel with a certain amount of grumpy old man comedy. A long way removed from his no nonsense hard nosed Arbitre self a decade later. Eddy tends to use the ground top wristlock to slow things down - ironically the same tactic Lemagoroux was using in the first bout. Delaporte also ues this tactic with a headscissors and a rear sitting chinlock during with he suddenly goes berserk with an absolute SPREE of fouling, even attacking L'Arbitre. He gets no Avertisement for this, in fact the ref starts a knockout count on Eddy. Eddy in turn goes wild with forearms, also attacking the ref and he DOES get a first Avertisement. This section is actually quite a wild brawl - I think OJ will like it. Things briefly get technical again but then Eddy goes wild at some foul of Delaporte's and actually SUPERKICKS THE REFEREE. I can only assume this referee has past as a psychiatric nurse as he doesn't disqualify Wiecz, doesn't even give him a Seconde Et Derniere Avertisement, just gives him a stern ticking off! Things go technical again, Delaporte has an armlock on the mat which he augments with a chinlock. Eddy counters with a crossed headscissor then goes up on his skull and does a toupie to make Gilbert Leduc proud! He then comes down to earth with another crossed headscissors on Delaporte. When Roger stands up, Eddy toupies him again. And then they do it a third time, this time with Roger resisting and trying for a folding press and lifting an dunking Eddy up and down. The fourth time Delaporte tries to use the ropes for leverage in the folding press. Eddy still fights back and the referee eventually sees the rope trick and orders a break but only gets one after Delaporte tries to hammerlock Wies z against the ropes, triggering some more brawling. Eddy gets a fifth cross headscissor but Delaporte is in a kneeling position so folds Eddy's legs into an Indian Deathlock and punches away at his opponent's head with the odd illegal hairpull thrown in for good measure. He eventually switches to chopping his man in the neck while holding him up which earns him an Avertisement. From there the bout becomes more sluggish and punch and headbutt with Eddy even administering one to L'Arbitre plus another superkick when the ref tells him off. For a bit even the commentator thinks a DDQ is coming but Eddie threatens Roger who cowers away for some time so the ref restrains himself to oversee this next phase of combat. Which mostly turns out to be forearm smashes with one Eddy superkick thrown in. Roger pitches Eddy over the ropes but slingshots himself back in, scissors Delaporte and slings him out before getting back in. Beating the count, Delaporte gets posted. Eddie then side chancery throws him down, delivers 3 somersault splashes, gets a Gotch toehold into Indian Deathlock and keeps dropping his weight backwards on Delaporte until the referee stops him and a Stretclothes clad ANDRE Bollet gets in. Wiesz superkicks both him and the referee before wandering off in disgust. He comes back and the referee declared him the winner before enlisting Andre Bollet's help to cart Delaporte away. Brawl with a few technical bits including some nice toupies. Was Eddy German? This ref bashing seems to have been going on longer there than in France (in Britain the ITA/IBA would have had KITTENS over it.)

@Matt D seems to have disagreed.

Where can this be seen? P.S. Kidd did a WOS bout in early 76 against Maurice Hunter , 6-7 months after the Black Jack Mulligan + triple tag bouts.

I'll deal with the first bout first and come back later for the other bout. So we're back at Maison de RTF, giant Not A Cinema Honest Guv place for the variety show with a couple of bouts. The early stages of Mantopolous/Lemagaroux are fast paced if top heavy in armdrags, also with rear snapmares and reverse snapmares and one brief roll up. Things get serious when Lemagaroux gets an arm lever on the mat. Mantopolous gets up and gets a headscissors (like a French Catcheurs) but is thrown off by Lemagoroux (like a British Wrestler.) We finally find out what the French name for The Surfboard when Vassilios gets one on - Le Prise Du Crab. (Crab Hold) Initially Vassilios is the technician and speedster while Gilbert slows things down with armbars. Then Gilbert starts working dirty with kicks and stomps. Eventually he got an Avertisement. Referee's name is Bollett.- is this Charley Bollet before he lost his hair? Vassilios also performs the George Kidd version of the Ball,darting out body parts to tempt and distract Lemagoroux. with brief flashes of arm and leg to grab at. Vassilios scores the winner when he cross buttocks throws and press for a pinfall. I probably didn't do Mantopolous proper justice with this piece as there was quite a lot of small details in his work and it was late at night when I typed this.

It seems that McMichael's fine moral example was lost on Brooks as he heels it up here. Ben was another tougher older wrestler, more into strength hold than technical skill. Inside the business he was known, apart from being Dad McCoy, for long sweltering heat with Peter "Kendo Nagasaki" Thornley. This started in the late 60s when Nagasaki badly beat up Ben's mentor Ernie Baldwin in a match and Ben tried to ambush Nagasaki in the locker room and came thrillingly unglued. Fast word to summer 1990 in Chelmsford or Chiselhurst., some place beginning with a C. The Boothmans were due to main event against Naggers and Blondie Bob Barrett and backstage Thornley was overheard discussing the 1967 incident Word reached the elder Boothmans who spent to match "playing up" in various ways before Nagasaki finished him. And afterwards buttonhole Brian Dixon and had the elder Boothman fired from All Star with Kid walking out in solidarity and resigning his British Lightweight title (although he continued to wrestle for Max C and also for Orig, appearing on Reslo, even with Dixon refereeing, until he quit and got into the roofing trade in 1994. Back in 1990, Ben, 1988 Golden .Grappler trophy winner and briefly British Heavy Middleweight Champion (a title Ritchie also held in 1990), was taking on the increasingly sour attituded Brooks. The mullet one takes his time releasing onb the ropes before getting a good spinning armbars, tightening the torque with each twist. He tried switching to a hammerlock but Ben rolls out to a crowd pop and a sour look from Brooks. Ben getting a sharp armdrags doesn't cheer him up. Kipping up out of an armbar and making Ben roll through a whip does cheer him, but he is down again when Ben reverses his high armbars and looks to be getting a top wristlock until Brooks pulls him down by the hair which sets the crowd on a downer at such dirties so early in the match. Brooks gets a side headlock and brags to the crowd but Ben breaks it open into another top wristlock and another armdrags. Ben has to release his ground armlock when Brooks puts his foot on the ropes and Ritchie gets a legdive and toe & ankle hold. He stretches and weakens the knee, illegal hair pulling and stomping, stopping to argue with referee Brian Dixon (who refs Ben despite having sacked him that year.). He whips and chops Brooks who spends a long time upset rear wIstlock slam.by the crowd cheering his opponent until Ben gets him in a rear waistlock slap. Brooks gets a Headlock and posting and bashes Ben's head in the corner. Ref Dixon tells him off, Brooks begs for mercy then stomps Ben more in the corner.He throws his man to ringside, grinning and taunting the crowd as Ben gets counter. He knocks Ben off the apron, so Ben drags him out and smashes his head on a table.He then slams Ritchie on a ringside mat but Richie comes back. Brooks gives Ben a chop to the throat and a top rope axehandle. He throws Ben in the ropes who comes back with a shoulderblock and bodyslam and crosspress for a 1 count.Brooks gets Ben in a rear chin lock for a long while then two chops to the throat, the second illegal for not letting the man up. Brooks delivers a Legdrop of Doom to only get a 2 then a 1 count, Ben takes over with pressure points into reverse pressure points into a Rude Awakening neckbreaker for a crosspress but only gets a 2 count. Brooks stretches Ben's neck in a seating position, shoves him to the mat and lands kicks and stomps of varying legality.He pulls Ben up by the hair slams his head back down, crosspresses and only gets 2. Ben gets a standing full nelson then a high spinning kick then a cross buttock throw and press for a 2 of his own. He gets a front snapmare and bodycheck but gets back a bodychecks from Ritchie who climbs to the top turnbuckle and leapfrogs over Ben, reaches the opposite corner, backwards leapfrogs overca charging Ben and getting him in an actually quite beautiful folding press for the one required fall. And he ain't modest about it. grinning smugly and taunting the crowd as he has done all the way through when things went well (and complaining and begging when things weren't going his way. He's come on a long way, 1990 with a British title was his peak. Ironically considering his new rule ending ways, he won it by DQ (over a dazed and confused Danny Collins in Croydon who went wild after taking a bump on the head ringside).

It's been four months since we last saw young bratty heel Eric Lacroix. We last saw him against fellow youngster Jean Phillipe De Lonzac. Now here he is against another promising kid of the post broadcast TV era, Yann Çaradec of Brittany We catch the end of a tag match Which as far as I can tell saw Lacroix screw Caradec of a win- at least that's what Caradec has to say in a promo afterwards. Lacroix is defending his French Welterweight title and medal and has moustachioed manager Theo Pouzade in his corner. Referee is Chico Roberts on loan from Reslo. They lock up and Eric gets a rear snapmare on Yann.who returns with a Cross buttock press and dropkick. A couple of whips later Caradec gets Lacroix in a sunset flip folding press and double leg nelson for 2. Next lockup, Lacroix gets a double arm lever into armdrag. He tries again but Caradec reverses and follows with two side chancery throws and a dropkick.. He gets the next wristlever and makes a loose hammerlock of it. Lacroix gets a rear snapmare in the hold. The same sequence repeats until Caradec shrugs off the rear snapmare and LacroiX crash lands. A third time Lacroix gets the traditional French reverse snapmare but Caradec. He gets a shove and Manchette but Caradec gets two rear snapmares and a dropkick.Caradec gets a side headlock into wristlever into armdrag. He gets thrown out of another side headlock but rebounds with a Manchette off the ropes. A third side headlock is bounced off the ropes by Lacroix who backdrops him but Caradec ground dropkicks his man. Caradec pulls him up but gets a manchette and guillotine elbowsmash in return. Lacroix fires off a powerful headbutt flooring Yann. He whips and clotheslines him, then pounds him in the back and gets in three stomps(the first one legal, not so the latter two and Roberts warns him. Lacroix throws the Breton boy out of the ring but Yan gets tangled in the ropes on the way out. L'Arbitre warns Eric and frees Yann. Eric gets a rear snapmare and some more stomps, again only the first one is legal. Lacroix gets another clothesline and guillotine elbowsmash. He presses and splashes Yann's arm then pitches him out of the ring, this time Yann making it outside, feet first. He makes it back at 5 to get another rear snapmare. Eric I cushions a corner and posts Yann in it. He leaps up for a monkey climb but Yann throws him off in something resembling a powerbomb. Once Eric is up, Yann sends him back down with two Manchettes. Yann side chancery throws and shoulderblocks Eric. He hits the ropes but somehow falls out and loses by TKO - it looks like manager Theo got involved pulling the top rope down but Chico didn't see it so the result stands - a successful defence for Eric Lacroix. A lot of good moves, but a lot of spaces for encouraging cheering and booing. Fits and starts match.

An unusual but interesting moral take on the subject of Disqualification. This is a clean match for the 1987 Golden Grappler Trophy and a rematch from a 1986 semifinal which McMichael won 2-1. McMichael was always the gentleman except against the most provocative of villains. Brooks, the Golden Apollon was at this stage a clean cut young lad with little sign of the heel character he became on Reslo in 1990 or the subtle heel of his title feud with Danny Collins that year, much less those evil cheating Sheffield Boys of 1993. This is the last bout you would think would end in a DQ and it's NOTHING to do with what Brooks became later on. Round 2 JIP. Richie has an arm bar on McMichael and is tightening it up. Mick is selling the pain by making fists which the referee gets a bit fussy about. But he doesn't punch his way out, the fireman's carry takedown (while still in the armlock.) Richie eventually gets one end of himself free and swivels round into the sunset flip position so Mick grabs a rope for a break and they start over after a handshake. They lock up and Mick gets a posting on Ritchie who sells his back. Mick side chancery throws him and delivers an elbowsmash to the chest, allowed as continuous movement. McMichael gets a chop and a fulls nelson. Brooks breaks it and comes off the ropes with a bodycheck but it is ineffective. McMichael goes for another posting but Brooks absorbs it well, gets on the second rope for a sunset flip into double leg nelson for 2. McMichael gets a side chancery throw and spinning stomp. Brooks gets a chop and Mick a headbutt. He goes for a chinlock a bit too late and is warned by the ref. The break and lock up. Richie gets a rear standing chinlock but Mick opens it up into an armbar. It is developing into a hammerlock when Mick transfers to a ground armbar, He steps over the arm, into and past the armhank position to give it an extra twist. Richie is selling heavily but manages to position himself for the rollout when the bell rings. They briefly slap hand and go back to corners. Round 3: They lock up and McMichael whips Brooks into the ropes and backdrops him on the rebound. Brooks takes quite a bump along with a count of 7 and is met with a McMichael headbutt once up that sends him down again for 4. McMichael tries again for the whip into backdrop but this time Brooks lands feet first and gets a double legdive. McMichael however throws him off with his legs and Brooks has to somersault out and take another bump and 4 count- hel sells his back, reaching behind himself to rub the pain away. Mick gets pressure points and transitions to a throw, Brooks hits the ropes and rebounds with a flying tackle which floors McMichael but the momentum causes Brooks to roll out of the ring to the floor. He vaults back in, bounces off the ropes and goes for an armdrags but Mick deftly reverses it for a crosspress and 2 count. Brooks' kick out causes McMichael to land on the ref, a common spot in Germany and often the source over there (and sometimes in France with the likes of Saulnier as L'Arbitre) of referee/blue eye misunderstandings and public warnings to good guys. This referee is a sensible chap who accepts McMichaels apologies. The wrestlers lock up, Brooks gets a side headlock into side chancery but Mick resists the throw attempt. He whips Brooks into the ropes and dodges a sunset flip leaving Brooks to somersault and crash to the mat. (You may recall Nipper Riley making this same mistake against Johnny Kidd a few posts earlier.) It's another nasty back weak weakener, and so is the throwdown by the chin Mick gives him but Ritchie kips up nicely, headbutts McMichael in the chest and does the same move back to him. However as he goes down, McMichaels' boot hits Brooks in the crotch. The referee examines him and calls off the match. It's an accident of couse and McMichael is as worried as anyone but the fact is that Villains do this sort of thing as a nasty foul, and when they do there is only one punishment for them. And besides, Mick was being a bit rash and reckless there. As MC Brian Crabtree puts it "the referee has no alternative but to technically - TECHNICALLY!!! - disqualify Mick McMichael.". Mick takes his punishment like a man and shakes the referee's hand. Brooks advances to the semi finals. Mick is a lot more philosophical about it than some of the crowd who boo - possibly the first bit of heat in Ritchie's career - in time it will become a staple diet. But McMichael has shown himself to because good honourable man who accepted he'd been reckless, took his punishment like a man and was a gentleman about it all. And that made him even more of a blue eye than ever.

Some Georg footage. Oddly enough he's teaming with one of my fave skills men Caswell Martin. I suspect a Big Daddy/lighter partner situation. And that's pretty much what I get - the cheek double team. The hot tag. Georg even does bodychecks. However instead of a Big Splash "Schuli" does brutal submissions - even on the referee when he intervenes. He has none of Daddy's flamboyance but maybe Germans/Austrians didn't go for that, they go for hardened everyman types with a big dog and bigger moustache like Schuli - or Roland Bock. All the same, when we see Blemenschutz pile the villains plus the referee up and sit on the lot - a comedy spot that Daddy would often do to villains but NOT the referee as well - it's hard not to suspect that Shirley had seen Schuli at the Heumarkt sometime in the 60s/70s and borrowed a lot of him. Or maybe it was Max.

Not sure of the storyline background but Collins' new mid 90s heel persona (as also seen in Britain) made another enemy in kilted referee Mick McMichael to the point where he put the tights back on. McMichael is still in good shape, or at least no worse shape than on ITV in the late 80s and he certainly still has his skills. Collins comes to the ring to FGTH'sTwo Tribes, his longer hair reminding me of the floppy fringe Larry Zybysko sported in the immediate aftermath of his turn on Bruno. I think Steve Logan MK1 in the 70s may be the actual inspiration. Doncaster Mick comes to the ring to bright bouncy dance music slightly unbefitting a tubby middle aged man. Crowd shouts his name like the Auntie Mabel chant in 90s art rock band David Devant And His Spirit Wife's song "I'm Not Even Going To Try" Round 1: after a couple of inconclusive lockups, Colin's pounds Mick on the ropes and gets a front chancery. Mick breaks it open into an armbar and forces a high whip and bump. Collins gets a legdive, toe & ankle and grapevine but as he turns to apply more pressure McMichael boots his in the backside into the ropes and leg flips him on the rebound. Collins charges but McMichael pitches him out of the ring on the move.Collins pounds Mick in the back as he argues with the ref. He slams Mick's head in the corner and gets a bionic elbow before being ordered out of the corner. Collins objects to angry Mick's closed fists then back attacks him as the ref sorts it out. He gets an open chinlock and armbar into legdive and toe & ankle, working on the foot. McMichael twists, throwing Collins and forcing a somersault and bump. McMichael gets a side chancery throw forcing another somersault bump. Heel Dirty Dan is quite the bumper. He regains his heat with two illegal concealed punches. He gets Mick down kneeling with pressure points then forearms him. Referee - I'm think it's Didier Gapp - finally gets fed up and gives Danny his first yellow card. Round 2: Collins attacks Mick while he is arguing with Gapp. Fed up, McMichael lands a concealed fist of his own and gets his own first yellow card. He pulls Danny off the ropes and lets him drop a bump. As they lock up, Collins jabs Mick in the side and blasts him in the back. They finger interlock and Mick goes down to the mat, kips up,clips open one side of the interlock and rolls to twist the other arm forcing yet another somersault bump. Mick still has the arm which he works over. Danny forces a rope break. They lock up and Danny get in a quick forearm uppercut.He gets an abdominal stretch and holds it a while. Mick looks to be getting the cross buttock throw but instead he switches arms, gets a side headlock and a retaliatory concealed punch.Mick gets a full nelson into side chancery throw and twisting stomp to the face. I love Mick's transitions. He gets a headbutt, Danny gets some kind of a blow and Mick gets a quick wrenching crossface. Fans are massively behind Mick which enrages Danny. He kicks his man and gets a double knees pin attempt but McMichael knees him in the face. Danny blasts his fallen opponent and gets on a full nelson when he gets up. McMichael powers out and reverses the hold, Danny rears into him to break it. Bell goes, McMichael gets in a chop, side Chancery throw and elbowsmash and earns himself a Second and final yellow card.Danny gets in a blow too as McMichael returns to his corner Round 3. Danny gets a side chancery, marches his man across the ring and gets an armbar and a nasty looking jab to the stomach. While Gapp terns to Mick. Danny loosens the corner pad. He tries to post Mick who reverses it and Danny takes the naked bolts in the spine. On the rebound he falls victim to a Mick backdrop, quite a high bump. He begs for mercy.Mick gets pressure points, Danny gets a barely concealed kidney punch and side chancery throw. He goes to the top turnbuckle of the uncovered corner and goes for a flying bodypress but Mick dodges and Danny crashes. Mick charges but Danny too sidesteps the gets a front chancery into over the shoulder neck suspension for the one required submission.v Afterbirth. Danny reapplies the hold and Tony StClair and a Japanese wrestler come to the rescue. Danny kicks them both. As they tend to Mick, Danny cuts a promo at ringside challenging Mick and Tony to further bouts. Really enjoyed Mick's performance, he hadn't lost a step. Danny was quite the bumping machine (and complaining machine) as Dirty Dan. I need to check if they ever had a clean match in 80s Britain? Edit- apparently not. Oh well, bang goes my idea for a British thread post. Ah well ...

McCoy, the rising whizzkid lightweight star of the mid 80s gets a heel to deal with. This is part of the 1988 Golden Grappler trophy with its famous father/son final, so while I don't want to spoiler you with the result, quite frankly ... McCoy cartwheels out of two throws and Jack. fair play to him, rolls up from on my Kid nails him with a dropkick, draping him over the ropes like a towel hung out to dry. Mulligan gets an armdrag into armlock on the mat. Kid briefly tries for a headscissors before opting toj ust stand up. Mulligan arm drags him down again. McCoy gets up again, holds firm with a top wristlock, vaults his mand and forces him down. Mulligan firwards rolls to untwist his arm,but finds himself in a standing wristlever. He accepts a finger Interlock, eventually getting the armbar advantage. McCoy rolls back and forth, kips up and botches a victory roll but gets a side chancery throw. before being wristlocked and whipped over arm to force a bump and the splashed. Mulligan comes in early on an axehandle to his fallen opponent and gets a quiet reprimand from referee Ken Joyce. He gets a snapmare and stomp. A fans shouts to the referee "Sort him out, Ken!". McCoy in a wristlock walks the ropes and jumps off taking Mulligan in an armdrags. Mulligan gets two concealed punches in. Joyce is suspicious. Mulligan gets a crotchhold, throw and kneelift and what Kent thinks is another illegal punch but Joyce disagrees. He gets a side chancery throw and splash for 6, a kneelift and a chop to the neck when the bell goes. During the interval. Walton mentions how McCoy's dad King Ben is also a quarterfinalist. Round 2. Mulligan off to a quick and barely legal shaft with repeat shoulderblocks, a side chancery and a final stomp. He slams the kid, goes to the top turnbuckle and-just as Kid stands - comes down with a flying axehandle worthy of Randy Savage. McCoy, up at seven, gets a forearm and a boot to the chest, but takes a posting well. climbsò the post and dives down and scoots through and dropkicks Mulligan. Kid gets rough himself with an elbowsmash and kneelift. He gets double legs and slingshots Mulligan through the ropes, hanging on to the middle rope with the tops of his kneecaps. It doesn't get any better for Mulligan, he gets backdropped and slungshot out again this time into the concrete. McCoy flips him back in off the apron, whips, leapfrogs and legflios him- Al getting massive POPS from the crowd. "Nice mover this boy" says Walton. A Mulligan shove gives the villain time to get to the top turnbuckle but is caught and slammed by McCoy. From there it's Kid all the way, he dropkicks Mulligan in the corner, body trips him from behind, folds him in a folding press and seals it with a bridge for the one fall required and a place in the semifinals as defending champion. A vehicle for McCoy bouts like this were as important for building him as a blue eye as bouts like his loss to his father in the final or his two TV British Lightweight Championship matches (including the second where he took home the belt on a TKO) were for building him up as a serious young technical master. Such is the life of the Young And Pushed ...

From the undercard of the 1986 "Us Americans" triple tag filmed by RTL, possibly as a one off TV special. Bit of a slug and punch affair. OJ will like it. About getting best bit of wrestling is a couple of decent flying headscissors a French style headscissor takedown counter to an armbar and a pretty impressive monkey climb, all by Morgan. Ends in an outside of the ring brawl, Not quite sure who wins but McMichael is seen telling off "Gunboat/"Judd" Harris at the end. Harris is billed as an Aussie for probably similar reasons to Stax and Kirk suddenly being "Americans " The first few minutes is the presenter plus Peter Wilhelm previewing this, the triple tag and a Finlay vs St Clair bout also. This is livened up by meeting Peter's pet chihuahua Speedy Gonzales. Awww ...

Okay, I'll give it ago using just the tablet. I recognise L'Arbitre Jacques Groucier from other 1975 bouts. Guy in the Hawaiian shirt next to Couderc is, I believe Jean Pradinas who carried on directing matches during the Daniel Cazal 80s and all the way up to the March '87 TV double bill with the trumpet player. Henker looks VERY fearsome and powerful in colour. Henker takes Leduc down in a grovit, he uses vaguely toupie esque motion. Henker forces Gilbert back down, he kicks back up and forwards into the ropes. Finger interlock and LeDuc releases and rolls backward, curling Henker's arm into a top wristlock. The powerful Henker simply pitches LeDuc out of the hold like he is bowling a ball, Gilbert rolls upright. Samourai tags in and armdrags LeDuc twice. LeDuc whips then throws Samourai but he rolls upright nicely both times. Corne tags in. He accepts a finger Interlock and goes down but then scissors the masked man and gets him into a double leg nelson folding press. Samourai manages to rock through triggering a Bascule motion. He tries to get the position for a folding press of his own but Corne spins him out. Samourai gets a top wristlock and forces Corne down, Jacky goes for a kip up, Samourai puts a knee across Corne's windpipe. Corne manages to roll backwards over the knee! Now he has the leverage advantage with the top wristlock and takes Samourai down. Corne whips Samourai but he again takes it well and rolls up nicely. Pleased with himself, Samourai uses a rolls to get to his corner and tag Henker. Old enemies- Henker injured Jacky on TV four years earlier. Corne takes Henker down with a legdive and switches to an armbar. Henker responds with pressure points. Corne cross buttocks him and tags Leduc who takes a headlock. Henker tries an atomic drop and Gilbert a cross buttock throw. Neither achieves much. they each land back on their feet.Leduc still has his side headlock and gets his cross buttock thrown in to make it a mat side heädlock. Henker forces upwards into a standing position so LeDuc cross buttocks him again. Henk tries again, gets a rear waistlock, tries for another atomic drop but Leduc makes another feet first landing. Unabashed, Henker whips Gilbert into the ropes, slams him and tags Samourai. Corne also tags in. He gets a great side chancery into rear snapmare into seating rear chinlock! Corne breaks it opening into a top wristlock but the masked Mechant uses an illegal hairpull to lock him back in. Corne tries again with the same result. On the third occasion he gets a standing rather than kneeling top wristlock. Samourai gets Corne on the ropes and aims a Nagasaki style chop at his throat but Corne ducks and the masked man lands throat first on the middle rope. Corne pitches Samourai across the ring then cross buttocks him to ringside. Corne tags Leduc who also cross buttock Samourai out of the ring. straight into Couderc's lap. The two have a bit of a confrontation and Samourai storms off. A fan calms him down with a pat on the shoulder and Samourai gets back in. Samourai gets a top wristlock but Leduc pulls off one of the 3 classic French Catch counters, the headscissors takedown. Samourai turns the hold upright and folds the scissor to release his head but Leduc boots his man into the ropes and flips him on the rebound. He goes for the mask but Samourai gets free, lands a Manchette. Leduc lands a heavier one back, forcing the masked team to tag. Henker comes in, gets a top wristlock and forces his man to the mat.The hold has developed into a top hammerlock. Leduc is selling facially a lot to let us know he is being tortured by a CRUEL MAN. He kips up into the standing top wristlock but Remy forces him back down. The top wristlock looks like the weakening setup stage of a Jim Breaks Special. Leduc kips up and gets the headscissors takedown counter - now he has done this trick on both masked men! When Henker gets the hold upright, Leduc starts unlacing la Cagoule. Henker pulls the legs down and open but does not try force a submission. He Manchettes his man and tags as does Leduc. Corne and Samourai gets a finger Interlock. Samourai floors his man but cannot shoulder press him down. Corne bridges up. He eventually ends up with the advantage but Samourai uses the same powering up and bridge to avoid a pin. Samourai monkey climbs his opponent - how often do you see a masked heel do that - and tries to flip over on top but Corne flips up and with both men handstanding, gets a bodyscissors on, taking Samourai down in the mount position. Corne boots and chops Samourai.who counters with a toehold and gets a single ankle scissor on. He pulls his man up and chops him down, following down with more chops. L'Arbitre orders him off so the masked team tags and Henker gets in a vicious a handle as the ref misses it., escorting Samourai out. He proceeds to rope assisted stomps, whipping the referee to the opposite ropes and earning him his first Avertisement. He tags Samourai who continues the treatment, chopping the kneeling Corne until the ref orders him off too. Samourai gets a grovit on and rocks back and forth with it on the ropes until warned off. While he bows to the crowd in apology, Henker on the apron grabs Corne from behind. Samourai goes for a rear snapmare but Corne stomps the mat to resist, lands two Manchettes and tags Leduc. Leduc lands two Manchettes of his own; the second sends Samourai over the ropes but he slips back in. A third one lands Samourai tied in the ropes, LeDuc considers an illegal punch but thinks better of it - and Samourai takes advantage of the pause to slip on an armlock. Leduc makes it a side headlock but Samourai leans into the ropes to force the break then tags Henker. Like earlier they finger Interlock and LeDuc releases one side, rolls back and gets a side by side top wristlock, but Henker armdrags him and slaps on an armhank. Leduc tries to stand up in the hold but Samourai pushes him over, enraging the crowd especially one guy in a blue t shirt. Three times LeDuc tries to get himself up in the toupie position to escape but it knocked down. He eventually falls into a kneeling position from which he achieves the desired headstand and uses the toupie to roll up his banked (Henked?) arm. He lands one Manchette on Henker who tags Samourai. Leduc gets a handstanding cross headscissor on him, with the feet turned and grasping Samourai's neck neatly. He performs this other toupie variant to throw the smaller masked man. He manages to repeat the throw despite Samourai blocking by grabbing the legs at the knees. He tries for a third one but Samourai has the block on more efficiently this time so Leduc hammers on his knee to boot Samourai over the top rope. Leduc lands a couple of Manchettes and even Corne gets in a cheeky shot from outside. He tags in and superkicks Samourai, snapmares and neck wrenches him. Henker tags in but falls victim to a legdive takedown and toehold He tries some illegals to the hair and throat, a noogie and what might just be a clawhold. He gets free with some Manchettes on the mat but the ref stops his head slamming follow ups. He gets a standing Manchette and choke on the bottom rope before tagging Samourai who gets some chops but has an ankle caught by Corne. Jacky pulls him down and wallops Henker for good measure. Leduc tags in and Samourai falls in his back begging for mercy. They finger Interlock and Leduc gets an armbar, upward whip forcing a hard bump and finally an armhank. He works on the wrist for some time before Samourai forces him off with pressure points and then a rear chinlock. He gets LeDuc to the ground with one more chop but Leduc gets up and they have a chopfight. Leduc ends up in Les Mechants' corner, Corne comes in to protest. Samourai uses a standing full nelson to throw LeDuc back to the centre. Henker tags in and Gilbert gets a spinning legdive on him. He gets an Indian Deathlock and works on the kneecap. Henker tries foul means (hair pull) and fair (sitting up) - the ref stops the former, Leduc and his chop stops the latter. Henker picks up LeDuc by the ears like he was Mick McManus ("Pas des orreils" quips Couderc.) Henker gets a full nelson but therefore breaks it when Samourai throws in his chops. Henker gets Manchettes, then another full nelson. Both illegal men run in, Leduc gets free as Corne slingshots Samourai into Henker. Leduc dropkicks Henker out of the ring while Corne slingshots Samourai again, this time into the corner before finishing him with an inverted waistlock suplex for the opening fall. (There's a brief blackout on the tape - I thought it was a commercial break but we get a couple more later.) Deuxieme Manche: Samourai goes from armbar to cross hands grovit to front chancery to rear over the shoulder neck wrench. Corne goes into the ropes forcing a break but Samourai lets him land badly. He tries stomping on Corne's neck with help from the top rope but Leduc at ringside pulls Samourai part way out of the ring by the leg. The masked team tag, Henker tries for pressure points and a full nelson, Jacky gets four Manchettes, Henker gets an armbar assisted by a wrist scissors on the mat. This transitions to an armbar on the mat in the guard with a knee holding the shoulders down. Samourai comes in to help with stomps and takes over the hold as L'Arbitre is distracted. Samourai eventually switches to Surfboard stage one with the twin wristlocks holding back the arms as the boot goes in the shoulder blades. Corne eventually flips out, rolls back and gets Samourai with a ground dropkick (this is the trick people are trying to do when they get folding press double leg Nelsonned like Bret at SummerSlam 92). Corne gets a Manchette but misses a second and gets double teamed by Les Rouges. Leduc comes in, Samourai gets him up against the ropes, bounces off but - as both Bons get out the way - cannons Henker to the floor. Leduc uses Manchettes to take care of both Cagoules, throwing Samourai and dropkicking Henker out of the ring. Samourai gets back in and gets an armdrag and armhank on Leduc. (Another tape break.) Leduc only takes three attempts instead of four this time to get up in the toupie and wind in the arm. He manchettes Samourai and both sides tag. Corne whips Henker and butts him in the upper chest. He whips him off the ropes and tries again but Henker is too quick with a kneelift. However, when Remy's evil alter ego tries for a splash, Corne catches him in a bodyscissors. For a moment it looks like Samourai will have to come to the rescue but Henker forces his way out, going for Corne's throat. He gets a rear chinlock and looks to be converting it to something like the Camel Clutch when Corne springs to life, rear double legdives the big man and slaps on a toehold. Der H uses a couple of illegal grabs to throat and hair to break out and get an armlock but Corne catches him with a headscissors in the guard. At least we know Henker won't use a toupie to escape.No, he tags Samourai who breaks it up. Corne takes Samourai down with a single legdive I to a toe and ankle grapevine (which could have been the beginning of either a Funk spinning toehold or an American figure four leglock (as used by the NWA champion Jack Brisco, just months from dropping the belt to Terry Funk) but instead turns out to be a Frank Gotch figure four toehold. Samourai escapes via a tag and the Bons tag also. Leduc enters and wristlevers Henker, high whips him to force a somersault and bump (impressive that Bayle could do that at his weight!) and stamps his hand! Gilbert repeats the wristlever into high whip bump sequence but this time wraps a leg around the wrist of the stamped hand, like half an armscissor. He works on the stamped hand. Henker reaches round with his other hand to get a grip and eventually pulls his man into a further nelson folding press, but Leduc reverses the momentum and is back on top working on the first, which Couderc reckons is turning white (something Kent Walton also sometimes liked to say in this situation.) Henker tries to grab the hair but is warned off by the ref. He tries this trick again but it is merely a decoy for a powerful -and legal- headscissors. Gilbert turns the scissors up right and tries for his corkscrew headscissors escape toupie but Masked Remy turns it back sideways. Just for good measure he savagely cranks Leduc's neck forward with the scissors. Leduc tries the toupie escape again with no more luck. He looks to be trying a third time but instead lands knees first on the crossed ankles, pinning them down to aid unplugging his head from the hold. Henker turns his man over into the guard, pulls him up by the ears. Manchettes him twice, bounces him off the ropes and gets a third one, flooring Leduc. He pulls him up and lands a fourth then gorilla presses him and stomachbreakers him over one knee. Leduc rolls off and tags Corne. Finally only now do Manchettes take over - Corne lands six and the two alternate shots until Samourai grabs Corne from behind. The masked men double team himuntil he is rescued by L'Arbitre. Henker gets "un derniere Manchette" (says Couderc, 9 years before the FR3 show) then gets an inverted waistlock and tombstone piledriver before tagging Samourai. He gets one chop in before Leduc also tags, gets in his own chops and double legdives Samourai into a slingshot into the ropes and landing alongside Leduc. Henker tags in and he and Leduc exchange Manchettes. One of Henker's is so stiff, Couderc chuckles at it. The heels double team Leduc and Henker bounces off the ropes to charge Gilbert but is tripped by Corne from outside. The the Bons double team Henker . Corne does the same slingshot moves from earlier, again resulting in a heel tag. He eventually does it to Henker then bodyslams and dross presses Bayle for the second straight fall. Gilbert Leduc and Jacky Corne are the winners 2-0. Les Bons raise their hands, Les Mechants sell their bumps before slipping quietly away in case any unmasking attempts take place. Refreshingly good human chess bout with little if any Manchette battles. At least 70% was good thinking scientific holds even if few lengthy chain sequences. A winner was us viewers!

Well we've had wrestlers doing Euro rodeo on the French thread, we've had wrestlers having a crafty football match on the German thread. So for Britain I thought I'd post a few clips of the fine and manly art of beating up smug TV presenters.

I stand corrected but it's not as essential to the local culture as it is in Spain. Is the present day sport the full on bleeding dead animal show or is it more like the Portuguese variant with rubber protectors on the Hons and no sword or picadors? P.S. been too busy visiting family and going swimming in the Mediterranean sun to experiment with my room TV to get it to show me LeDuc/Corne Vs Henker/Samourai. Will try and see if my brother in law's parents have any memories of Rafael Halperin - they would have made Aliyah just around the time of his 1973 retirement match. Most likely they'll only know him as a rabbi. #jjerusalemofgold

Following the InterVille bull-pestering footage on the French thread, I now presenting Football for CWA wrestlers. (That's football as in the Association game, the one actually played with the foot, not that Rugby in motorcycle helmets game Bill Watts and Jim Ross used to wet themselves over.) Now I just have to find something similar for the British thread.