The Beginner's Guide To British Wrestling

[David Mantell]

On 11/18/2014 at 2:33 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

Johnny Kwango vs. Kevin Conneely (4/4/73)

 

Conneely's not really my cup of tea, but there's no denying the crowd found him hilarious. The crowd here at Southend were in stitches with one guy howling the entire way through. I do think his humour may have played better live as there are times where you can't hear what he's said, or he makes a joke about something off-screen, and if Walton doesn't explain what's going on it's difficult to follow what's happening. If you liked Father Ted and you want to see an Irish comedian wrestling you might enjoy him. Personally, I prefer Kellett as he also brought some hard-nosed grappling.

I'm not a fan of his comedy either and it got worse on Reslo in the early 80s but I do like how he suddenly got serious and scored two good folding press pinfalls over Kwango.

Referee Tony Mancelli is the same one as from Thompson Vs StClair less than 6 years earlier.

[David Mantell]

On 8/27/2015 at 9:24 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

Kevin Conneely vs. Carl Jason (Aberystwyth, taped 1983)

 

One of the strangest things about this Reslo footage is seeing Irish comedy worker Kevin Conneely appear on TV a good six or seven years after he was last on World of Sport. Apparently, he jumped to All-Star at some point; and since most of Dixon's guys worked for Reslo at some point or another, here he is. He was more or less the Irish version of Les Kellett and cracked jokes the entire bout long. Allegedly, he was tough as nails and a legit shooter, but you'd never know it watching his bouts as he didn't have that hard edge that Kellett possessed. I don't think the Welsh crowd got his humour as much as the English halls did, or perhaps they didn't enjoy it as much. I can't imagine it came across that well on commentary either, as Walton was always on hand to explain some banter Conneely was having with the audience whereas the Reslo commentary was in Welsh. Anyway, Conneely's bouts were rarely as good as Kellett's; and while I enjoyed Carl Jason in his bout with Jackie Robinson, he was the butt of Conneely's jokes here and it's difficult to shine in that sort of role.

I agree OJ, Carl Jason aka Carl McGrath, trainer of Robbie Brookside, deserves better than this. KC's babbling away did grate (and I doubt S4C execs - or Orig Williams - were happy with him babbling away in ENGLISH.) Ten years on from the bout with Kwango, Coneelly was older and tubbier wearing a top half like Mick McManus, Mike Marino and George Kidd all did in their later days. He repeats the mistaking a microphone for a gun gag of a decade earlier.

Just as an experiment I watched the bout with the sound off.  Something of an improvement, Coneelly does some good cartwheel escapes for a man his size (except the one that ends in a pratfall in the corner) and lots of further nelson roll up pin attempts. I've seen McGrath (Jason)  work  heel before eg holiday camp footage of him and "Sadistic"Sandy Scott Vs TBWs Robbie Brookside and Doc Dean in 1984  and he looks on the verge of cracking up and breaking out the dirty wrestling. He still comes out with some good moves, going into a bridge during a test of strength then flipping upwards into a standing full  Japanese strangle hold. Coneely does a nice sidestep roll up for the one fall required.

By the way, the view of the ring with a wooden wall behind just a few rows of audience (presumably a theatre stage on one side with fans seated on it) reminds me a lot of a similar stage-facing camera angle used for most of Thompson-StClair '67 sixteen years earlier, an era before colour and an era before keeping master tapes instead of wiping them.

[David Mantell]

RTE in Ireland never had its own wrestling show, but apart from watching World of Sport on the UTV and HTV signals, Irish wrestling fans could get the S4C signal for Reslo. As a result Orig Williams toured Ireland regularly, even after Reslo's 1995 demise, last visiting with a WWF tribute tour in the early Noughties.  The tours meant  occasional features on Irish TV news. Here is one from 1989 featuring (I think) Giant Haystacks and Danny Collins Vs Fit Finlay and Blondie Barrett, Princess Paula Vs Debbie Drake and an interview with Jack Flash Davey:

Also wrestlers including Haystacks appeared on chat shows. Notice Haystacks struggle to explain his name without mentioning William D. Calhoun.

Even before Reslo, Stax would visit Ireland and give RTE a whiff of the kicks they would never know, such as this 1978 bout with Jack Flash Sherlock:

 

 

[David Mantell]

On 3/17/2013 at 1:49 PM, ohtani's jacket said:

 

Masambula vs. Tony Charles (aired 2/9/72)

This is the only Masambula singles match with have on tape, which is pretty much the reason I'm listing it because Masambula was every bit the TV star that McManus, Pallo, Kellett and Steve Logan were and everyone should see his schtick at least once. It's basically the same blend of comedy and great wrestling that Kellet and Co. were famous for, but he had his own unique spots that were highly entertaining, from his wheelbarrow escape from a hold to his corner post headstand to celebrate a fall. The headstand is amazing the first time you see it and like nothing I've seen before in the world of wrestling. He really hammed up his witch doctor gimmick and voodoo schtick and had a lot of fun with it. Just a tremendously entertaining performer by the looks of it. Sadly he had a really awful end to his career where he ended up crippled. This went to a draw and kind of petered out instead of both guys pushing each other all the way, but it was the best Tony Charles match I've seen for what it's worth.

 

Masambula wasn't exactly a "witch doctor", just an African wrestler with an African ring name and who wore a jaguar skin to the ring and did a quick tribal dance when introduced.  Once the matches were underway he was a no nonsense technical wrestler (apart from his catchphrase "Him say yes?" to ask the referee to check for a submission.). There is a review on here of a bout with Leon Arras (so this is not his only singles bout in circulation) and he and Honey Boy Simba have a good tag loss to the Royal Brothers. His career ended in the mid 70s when he landed spine first on a ring post on TV, it didn't cripple him as such but his injuries were nasty enough to trigger a kayfabe busting court case.  Journalists afterwards tried to get him to spill more beans but he refused, saying it would ruin the public's enjoyment of wrestling if they knew too much. He already had a couple of missing fingers, allegedly from an encounter with a knife wielding burglar while a policeman in Gambia.

Masambula 's "wheel barrow" escape from a gurd hammerlock is a sight to behold, shuffling out of a pinning predicament on his back. He gets his equalising pinfall with a neat sunset flip then celebrates by hand-standing on the top turnbuckle - a trick used as a ball-style trap by 21st century old school style British wrestler Dean Allmark. He also forces Charles upwards by the jaw to prise off a "headlock and strangle" (sleeper.) from him.  He has Charles neatly tied up and ready for a headbutt but sportingly declines to administer it. 

This appears to be from the same 1972 TV taping as Adrian Street Vs Jim Breaks. That was also a 1-1 Broadway.  Nobody really complained about it with either match and clean bouts that end on a refused TKO no contest were seen as a truncated version of the same finish.

It's a midweek late evening broadcast, the same timeslot as in France but by no means a graveyard slot in either country..

[ohtani's jacket]

Masambula had a witchdoctor gimmick.

The other singles match was from a 16mm film and isn't in circulation. I didn't have a copy at the time that I wrote that post.

[David Mantell]

9 hours ago, ohtani's jacket said:

Masambula had a witchdoctor gimmick.

The other singles match was from a 16mm film and isn't in circulation. I didn't have a copy at the time that I wrote that post.

Okay it calls him that, but it's not like he did a complete Papa Shango gimmick act.  The cultural stuff would go out the window ready for the start of Round 1 and from that point he would be a straight up wrestler (with maybe a hint of personality like a Vic Faulkner - I'm guessing "him give up?" was something he used to say in gym shoots which got a laugh from the boys so he did it in the ring).

Maybe he played it up a bit more against a heel - the two Masambula bouts we have on YouTube are very much clean scientific sportsmanly matches, this one and Masambula/Zimba vs the Royals from June 1970. He did have a headbutt (like nearly every wrestler of African heritage in the Western World in that era from Bobo Brazil to Johnny Kwango to Mammouth Siki.) which he refuses to use in this bout and IIRC against the Royals too.

Interesting about the 16mm print- a B/W copy, I'm guessing?  Although the original transmission would have been colour, being August 1970.

[ohtani's jacket]

It's in colour.

[David Mantell]

51 minutes ago, ohtani's jacket said:

It's in colour.

Interesting. I wonder which sale customer as of 1970 had colour but couldn't cope with VT?  Maybe somewhere with 525 lines/NTSC?  We know from the Faulkner Vs McMichael 1872 bout they were still doing B/W prints a couple of years later.

I also wonder whether or not ITV have that bout in their video archive - if not, that could be the one surviving copy.

[shiek75]

similiar like the british pathe channel posted somewhere here in the forum i found the channel british movietone ,

https://www.youtube.com/@BritishMovietone/search?query=Wrestling

 

[David Mantell]

6 minutes ago, shiek75 said:

similiar like the british pathe channel posted somewhere here in the forum i found the channel british movietone ,

https://www.youtube.com/@BritishMovietone/search?query=Wrestling

 

Thanks for that. I have some of those clips from years ago on the Pathe site. They tend to crop down to what the film makers considered amusing spots with cynical commentary, so they can be hard for a fan to watch.

[David Mantell]

On 1/4/2014 at 3:26 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

Alan Dennison vs. Johnny Kwango (1/5/72)

God, this was awful. There was no way either Dennison or Kwango were going to lose, and since both wrestlers were used to controlling bouts where they did a lot of schtick, this was a rudderless mess where neither guy was about to get their shit in. One of them should have sacrificed their ego and made it either a Dennison or Kwango bout, the way Pallo/Kwango was a Pallo match.

 

Strange review - Kwango lost by Knockout which, as we've discussed, was considered a more emphatic way to win than two falls or submissions, So one of them DID lose. 

This is the one full TV bout we have of Dennison's heel days (all we otherwise have of Bad Alan is some footage from The Wrestlers docu of 1967, silent footage of The Dennisons - Alan plus Sid Cooper -  going heel Vs heel with Street and Barnes plus the 1976 match with Dynamite Kid that was Alan's Damascus Road moment to turning good. Most older British fans on message boards prefer him as the snarling bullying heel rather than the somewhat sanctimonious blue eye (as a kid I sided with heel Jim Breaks in their feud.)   

The story of this bout was Dennison the nasty cruel man doing the dirty on Kwango but occasionally getting his comeuppance from a Kwango headbutt. Dennison was not just the sadist but a cowardly sadist who couldn't handle retribution but reverted back to his jeering self the moment he was safe. His taunting of Kwango as "a BAY-BEE!!!" and rolling up a second's towel into a maternity wrap and rocking it to sleep was particularly memorable.  The moustache and the grown out stubble of his alopecia-scarred scalp made him look extra cruel and hellish.

A competitive heel Vs blue eye match ending in a tainted but officially definitive win for the hated heel, like Flair outing his feet on the ropes to get a winning pinfall. Dennison was billed as the man Possessed By The Devil - until he had his soul saved by of all people Tommy Billington.

[ohtani's jacket]

That's an awful finish. There is no way that failing to meet the count because your foot is trapped under the apron is as emphatic as winning by two falls or submissions, and its stretching the boundaries of the imagination to even call it a knockout. The matchmaker didn't want Dennison going over Kwango cleanly so we got a cheap finish that drew Dennison heat without Kwango looking weak. It also allows the matchmaker to book a return match in the future. It makes sense in the context of that week's wrestling but it's a crap viewing experience for the way we consume WoS in 2024. I did like the baby taunt with the towel and Dennison's facial hair. It may have been more of a Dennison heel showcase than I realized in 2014.

[PeteF3]

Yeah, that finish is terrible. Maybe if Dennison had actually stuck Kwango's foot into the beam himself, a la Finlay's antics with the ring apron in his later years, it might have worked, but here it just looks like a fluke and doesn't do anything for anybody. Dennison didn't even do anything clever so I don't get the Flair comparisons.

Knockout finishes are not created equal. There's a difference between two guys and a promoter lawyering with the rulebook to come up with a bullshit finish, and Pat Roach knocking a guy unconscious with the big boot or Brummagem Bump.

I don't know if the throw out to the floor was supposed to look like that but either way it was also badly executed.

[David Mantell]

1 hour ago, PeteF3 said:

Knockout finishes are not created equal. There's a difference between two guys and a promoter lawyering with the rulebook to come up with a bullshit finish, and Pat Roach knocking a guy unconscious with the big boot or Brummagem Bump.

Knockout finishes are ABSOLUTELY created equal in Britain/Europe . Yes you can have screwy knockout finishes designed to create heat for a rematch but you can equally have screwy pinfalls with either wrestler's foot or feet on the ropes, tights pulled, pins overturned by a tag partner while the referee is distracted, the lot. And of course a heel like Dennison is going to brag about it as if he'd destroyed the guy.

A Knockout finish has a different importance from a countout finish in America. The two audiences were brought up with different ways of viewing what a knockout/countout signified. It's a different wrestling culture, not a defective wrestling culture, and it should be assessed on its own terms, not on American Wrestling fan expectations.

In 1966 at the Victoria Hall Hanley, Kendo Nagasaki defeated and unmasked his mentor Count Bartelli in a loser lose mask match, after 20 years of Bartelli under a mask, on a very similar finish to this with Bartelli narrowly failing to beat the count. That match is considered legendary yet it ends the same way as this one.

[David Mantell]

2 hours ago, ohtani's jacket said:

It makes sense in the context of that week's wrestling but it's a crap viewing experience for the way we consume WoS in 2024.

I think it's best to put oneself in the place of the weekly British viewer rather than viewing everything through the jaundiced eye of a modern smart fan, especially the American concept of what constitutes wrestling smartness. It is what it is, a heel gets a screwy win, brags about it as an achievement, gets heat and sets up a revenge match.

[PeteF3]

1 hour ago, David Mantell said:

Knockout finishes are ABSOLUTELY created equal in Britain/Europe . Yes you can have screwy knockout finishes designed to create heat for a rematch but you can equally have screwy pinfalls with either wrestler's foot or feet on the ropes, tights pulled, pins overturned by a tag partner while the referee is distracted, the lot. 

Of course you can. There are crap pinfall finishes, crap submission finishes, and good DQ/countout/KO finishes.

This was none of the above. It was a bad KO finish as opposed to a good one. Even leaving aside the question of whether or not we should evaluate it by what the rematch may have drawn, the actual physical finish was simply not executed competently.

[David Mantell]

31 minutes ago, PeteF3 said:

Of course you can. There are crap pinfall finishes, crap submission finishes, and good DQ/countout/KO finishes.

This was none of the above. It was a bad KO finish as opposed to a good one. Even leaving aside the question of whether or not we should evaluate it by what the rematch may have drawn, the actual physical finish was simply not executed competently.

I imagine there was a whole string of rematches around the country. That was how it was usually done and this was, in American terms, the angle that set them up.

How well they drew isn't really the issue. The issue is that it is what it is, a set up match designed to get Dennison heat against one of the most beloved babyfaces in the country at that time. As an exhibition of how cruel, arrogant, unpleasant and ultimately cowardly when the crunch (headbutt in this case) came Alan Dennison was (until the day the 17 year old Dynamite Kid sorted him out) it's a great heat vehicle.

[ohtani's jacket]

Failing to beat the count can be a dramatic finish if it's executed well. The Kwango finish wasn't. You can't really blame Kwango since that type of selling wasn't his forte, wasn't something he had a lot of experience with, and wasn't the style of wrestling that made him a popular attraction. It may have been edgy for UK TV at the time to have the action spill out of the ring, but we only have to look at late 50s/early 60s French Catch to see t being done in a vastly more exciting way. They stick to the rules for TV, but it makes for a weak finish where much of the heat is a result of the bout ending prematurely and not the way the fans wanted. 1972 results are limited, but it doesn't appear to have set up a rematch.

This isn't about being an American wrestling fan and not understanding the nuances of British wrestling. It's something that British wrestling didn't do well. In part because of certain restrictions placed on it but also because it had moved past all-in wrestling to become the type of wrestling the fans expected to see that evening, particularly from Kwango. I'd have to watch it again to see whether my comments were unfair or harsh. I never thought much of Dennison as a worker, so I doubt much would change.

[David Mantell]

I've checked one results source and found at least two rematches already, both of them tag contests where Alan was teamed with his regular Dennisons tag partner Cyanide Sid Cooper.

WALTHAMSTOW – 20/4/72. …..Lennie Hurst and Johnny Kwango beat The Dennisons.

BELLE VUE – 29/4/72. The Dennisons beat Honey Boy Zimba and Johnny Kwango.

Bear in mind the source in question is very incomplete and doesn't seem to include the TV taping that produced the Kwango/Dennison bout. So I expect there were plenty more.

Dennison's heat came from his surly growling sadistic psychotic performance all through the bout. Having him celebrate a tainted win like it was some kind of triumph simply topped it off.

[David Mantell]

https://wrestlingheritage.co.uk/alan-dennison/

Quote

The Devil of Denholme

 

Chameleon was one of the names used by Barnsley’s Alan Manterfield in the 1940s, but could equally have applied to Bradford’s Alan Dennison, a man of contrasting styles. Starting out as a good guy his physique was more suited to the role he adopted in the early 1960s of a rumbustious hard man who would inevitably lose his temper with bulging eyes and snarling of championship calibre. A one strap leotard, studied belt and leather wristbands were the trademark of his ring attire, confirmation for the fans that here was a man who was up to no good, “Leather was obviously a sign of villainous intention,” remembered Powerlock. Frank Thomas recalled a poster proclaiming Dennison was “Possessed by the devil.” Yet suddenly in the early 1970s Alan saw the light once again, made a conversion of which St Paul would have been proud, and the rule bending villain became a squeaky clean sportsman. It was a transformation that some fans found hard to believe.

 

In 1977 when we witnessed the unpredictable rule bender suddenly do the most unpredictable thing of all, turning down a decision against young Mike Jordan (SIC - IT WAS ACTUALLY 1976 AND THE DYNAMITE KID -DAVID) and taking the microphone to praise his opponent it was a very different character from the one seen many times before. On one occasion the M.C. was faced with the task of announcing that the advertised champion was unable to appear, “Ladies and Gentlemen, replacing …… this evening will be Alan Dennison.” The crowd made it quite clear that champion or no champion they much preferred to watch Alan Dennison. Shortly afterwards Alan entered the ring amidst a thousand boos. Following that match we interviewed Alan and, as was often the case, found that he was nothing at all like his ring persona. He was a gentle man who talked at length about his family and his desire to help young people.

 

Although the style changed Alan consistently gave value for money. In the 1960s The Dennisons team of Alan and Syd Cooper antagonised fans, especially when matched against the blue-eyed teams like the Royal Brothers and the White Eagles. When Cooper moved South it could have been the end, but his place was admirably taken by Hooker Ted Heath, the perfect replacement. Whatever the style there was never any doubting the strength of the man with the bulging muscles who had started out as a body builder. The Strongman nickname was certainly appropriate for this Mighty Atom who made use of his strength to overcome opponents. 

 

Allan Fawbert Dennison was born on 25th June, 1929, making him a late starter as a pro wrestler, nearing his thirtieth birthday when he joined the paid ranks at Grantham, on 27th September, 1958. His opponent was fellow Bradfordian Don Branch, a man who he must have known well. The local newspaper reported that Alan made his professional debut in “fine style” and held his own in a down to earth battle, refusing to concede anything, until an unfortunate back injury forced his retirement. We have been told, without confirmation, that Alan had wrestled professionally a year earlier, using the name Young Sandow.

 

Alan soon became a familiar face to the television fans, making the first of over 100 television appearances in 1960. It is a remarkable achievement, quite likely bettered only by Mick McManus and Bert Royal, that Alan appeared on television every single year from 1960 until 1984, the year of his untimely death. One of his most memorable appearances, (how do you pick one from so many?) was the knock out loss against Mick McManus in the 1966 Cup Final spectacular. And yes, it is one that we remember as one of our great wrestling moments more than half a century later. His matches against McManus were always turbulent affairs, another memorable one being a McManus victory, of course, at the Royal Albert Hall. Another long discussed match was one of many against Jackie Pallo. Pallo won the match but in a “slight” disagreement following the announcement Alan had the last word and the fans cheered as Pallo was carried back to the dressing room.

 

One of the most memorable moments in Alan’s career was in July, 1968, the night that he and fifteen other wrestlers were introduced to H.R.H. The Duke of Edinburgh when he attended his second wrestling tournament at the Royal Albert Hall.

 

Championship success in professional wrestling was an indication of a wrestler’s status in the eyes of the promoters. With his clean cut image established Alan was crowned British welterweight champion on three occasions, the title see-sawing between Jim Breaks and himself between 1980 and 1983.

 

A gentle and kind man Alan’s place in the nation’s heart was demonstrated when his untimely death was announced on the national television news. TV viewers were shocked to hear that he had collapsed and died at the Floral Hall, Southport on 27th June, 1984 following a match with Dave Duran. It was reported that ambulancemen tried to revive him for fifteen minutes prior to his death on the way to hospital.

 

Page added 20/10/2019

 

[David Mantell]

On 1/12/2014 at 1:40 AM, ohtani's jacket said:

Clayton Thomson vs. Majid Ackra (8/1/74)

 

The first two falls of this featured some decent stylings from Clayton Thomson. The problem with Thomson is that Walton puts him over so strongly on commentary as one of the best wrestlers he's ever seen, etc., which may have been true in the 60s but wasn't on show in the 70s. Still, there were some decent Euro style holds in the opening two falls before his opponent got frustrated and turned it into a brawl. Ackra was a Pakistani wrestler who hadn't been on TV since the late 60s and was basically doing a gimmick where he was wearing lifts in his boots. Walton did his damnedest to sell it like the boots were dangerous but it was still pretty lame. The finish was awful as Thomson surprised Ackra with a flash pin coming out of his corner for round four and it was one of those weakish looking pins wrestlers sometimes score in British wrestling instead of something super slick.

I decided to rewatch this after the recent 1967 find.. A good technical bout until it stops being one, which as Kent says was becoming something of a running issue with Clay's opponents. I should think it's clearer now from the StClair bout what Kent saw in Clay.   

I wonder if my present day fave Jordan Breaks is a fan, Clay does what became Jordan's ankle scissor trip. It's a one fall bout so I assume you meant the first two rounds, OJ. 

Mildly amusing spot near the end when all three men including referee Tony Mancelli (same as the 1967 bout) go over the top rope together in one bundle.

Personally I quite like the pinfall - Thompson turns himself over in a side chancery, does a French Catch style reverse snapmare over the top of Macra then lands behind him to get a folding press. Even if it comes out of nowhere, it's still an ingenious piece of work.

 

[David Mantell]

Slightly disappointing bout. If anything it's Clay that loses his cool in this one- after a couple of rounds of various sleeper holds being put on him (including a headscissor sleeper) he snaps and starts refusing to release holds. eventually getting a public warning.  He calms down after this but holds are worked longer with hardly any reversing. Clay gets the one fall required with a bog standard double legdive press. He and Trood shake hands but referee Max Ward is shooting daggers at Clay and a significant minority of the audience are in no mood to forgive either.

The video contains a lengthy advert break for financial services products.  You may wish to FFWD from 12:00 to 16:00

 

[David Mantell]

On 12/29/2014 at 12:55 PM, ohtani's jacket said:

The Exorcist vs. Bob Kirkwood (12/4/74)

 

This was the supposedly long awaited debut of The Exorcist. I was hoping he'd come to the ring with a bible and cross, maybe a little holy water, but he was just another masked grappler. I think it Clayton Thomson under the mask here. Walton did his best to put the gimmick over, stating repeatedly how The Exorcist had refused to speak to him in the locker room or give any information about himself. There was some awkwardness at first as Thomson did some freestyle moves while Walton was trying to put over that he was a slow mover, but he soon settled into his work with the claw hold. As with most angles on WoS, it could have been done so much better (and probably would have on a Paul Lincoln show, I imagine), but credit to Bob Kirkwood. He may not have looked like much, but he was the consummate pro who did whatever the promoters asked of him, including putting over masked men.

Okay, let's really go out on a limb with Clay as he moonlights as a psycho masked heel. Only the fourth masked wrestler in ITV history after Black Mask in 1960, The Outlaw (Gordon Corbett) in the late sixties, Kendo from 1971 onwards and Kung Fu debuting just a few weeks earlier. Clay trying to be as unrecognisable as possible, not using his technical skill, using a clawhold and plenty of dirty wrestling while using rope breaks a lot - a great way to get heat from an audience who like their technical wrestling.  Kirkwood does a few good escapes and rollouts. Eventually he goes wild with forearms and chops, even ignoring the bell - and the fans cheer him for it!  Clay regains the advantage with neck attacks and in the only real clue as to his identity, pins Kirkwood with the same double legdive press as in theTrood bout and the crowd are fuming.  A new heel monster has been created.

Clay did one more TV match under the hood against Caswell Martin before handing the gimmick over to Corbett who did it on the indies, accompanied by manageress Miss Jamie Barrington.

[David Mantell]

Ah this is more like it! Clay in a good scientific bout against Alan Sarjeant. master of the bridge and of swiveling bridges using his head as a fulcrum. Also the best escape ever from a Boston Crab, out the front of the hold, head last, pushing against his opponents ankles for power. Clay also coming up many great moves from the 1967 bout. Ends on a refused TKO no contest after Alan bangs his shin on the edge of the ring flipping out of a hold, sorry OJ. A palate cleanser after the last few bouts. Would have loved to see these two former Mountevans British champions have a 1-1 Broadway.

Clay had one other bout as the Exorcist against Caswell Martin which is a bit of a waste as Clay and Cas could have had a darn fine clean match.

 

[David Mantell]

It's occurring to me that Reslo was just as much a melting pot as New Catch.  Big Daddy was on it, Flesh Gordon was on it and here to complete the set of national babyface superheroes is Big Otto defending the CWA title. Drew is still sporting his shaved head from the hair match with Daddy (no sign of Doctor Monika Kaiser- imagine her and Otto jawing away in German at each other) while the referee is none other than Brian Dixon (aka Brian George)

Strength match like a goody Vs baddy version of Big Daddy's match with John Elijah in 1977 Otto is reluctant to release holds so Dixon has to be equal with Drew. Too scores the pin to keep his title, the final shot is a closeup of the belt. From a distance Otto looks like he's written several months worth of supermarket shopping lists on his lime green leotard but close ups reveal it's actually a pattern like the tail fins of international passenger aircraft.