[2000-09-23-ECW-Danbury, CT] Jerry Lynn vs Rhino

[soup23]

This match didn’t do a lot for me. As good as the interference was in the previous match, Cyrus was annoying here. Add in heel referee Danny Daniels and it makes the monster Rhino look pretty weak. Before that we had some weak crowd brawling and it seemed like both Lynn and Rhino were taking it pretty easy tonight. Lynn gives Daniels the Cradle Piledriver at the end when Daniels was acting like a goof. This is a feud that carries over into IWA-MS in four years. **1/4

[AstroBoy]

This isn't the strength of Rhino at all and it was too long to maximize him. Lynn isn't really natural as a underneath babyface type in this kind of match and so it was just bland. Rhino was better served in short bursts of action at this point and Lynn doesn't present an interesting enough style counterpoint to him to make it compelling at all.

 

**

[Migs]

This goes almost immediately into a crappy crowd brawl, which seemed like a pretty poor use of Lynn. And then we get back to the ring and Rhino slows it right down. More chin lock, a ref bump, Cyrus interference, oh, and the heel referee. Yikes.

[GSR]

Rhino tries to rush Lynn prior to the bell however he sidesteps out the way, Rhino crashing into the turnbuckles.  Nice headscissors takedown and Rhino slides to the floor where he’s then caught by a pescado.  They fight into the crowd and around the arena, although this is standard ECW crowd brawling fare, marred by some terrible camera work before returning to the ring.  Huge military press slam by Rhino dropping Lynn chest first to the mat.  Rhino slaps on a rear chinlock as Cyrus yells at him to “give it up”, even claiming to the referee that he did so.  Lynn forces the escape and lands a lovely sunset flip out of the corner.  After Rhino kicks out of that he’s back at it with the chinlock.  If the plan was to try and wear his opponent down it doesn’t have the desired effect.  Bulldog off the middle by Lynn followed by a swinging DDT.  He runs into a Rhino big boot, the ‘Manbeast’ goes to gore him however Lynn leapfrogs over him and he ends taking out referee Mike Kehner (you see Kehner move into the path so this didn’t look the best).  Cradle piledriver but there’s no-one to count the fall.  Cyrus cracks Lynn in the head with a microphone and then rolls Rhino on top.  Danny Daniels sprints out to replace Kehner but Lynn kicks out of the cover at two.  Lynn counters the powerbomb and goes for a second cradle piledriver when Daniels clotheslines him.  Rhino with a piledriver and Daniels is taking no chance of a kick out this time, fast counting Lynn’s shoulders to the mat.  He does get some comeuppance post-match, continuing to celebrate long after Rhino and Cyrus have left, and ending up on the receiving end of a cradle piledriver.

Danny Daniels is appalling.  I hate the heel referee gimmick as it is but he’s just so over the top with everything.  I’m not sure that Rhino lying on the mat applying a chinlock is the best way to use him, while that ref bump was pretty unconvincing too.