Notes and results from the wrestling in Cookstown (15/10/22)
Thank you to all who attended the wrestling at Cookstown Community Centre on Saturday October 15th 2022. There was a great buzz before, during and after the show and while it was a credit to the great crew on hand it was also due to the awesome energy of the crowd as well. Cookstown definitely enjoys its wrestling.
First off, really nice venue. Cheers to Isobel at the community centre for hosting us – even if she wasn’t too sure what exactly to expect!! Cookstown has long lacked a venue that isn’t an overpriced hotel or theatre, so it’s great to have the community centre as an affordable resource. Wrestling in Cookstown dates back to the 1960s when the likes of Darkie Arnott, Dave Finlay Snr and Jack Flash Shirlow were on the bill. Indeed whenever Shirlow and promotional partner / fellow wrestler Whirlwind Monroe started bringing over ITV World of Sport wrestling stars for week-long tours of Ireland, Cookstown was one of the stops during their first tour in April 1976, and legendary wrestling funny / hard man Les Kellett the star along with one of Ireland’s greatest wrestling exports “The Amazing Kung Fu” Eddie Hamill (who went from local leagues to television fan favourite). So I was delighted to add to the history of wrestling in Cookstown.
And oh look a plug for my book about the history of pro wrestling in Northern Ireland…
Here are the results for the show on the Cagematch website. Cagematch is a fantastic site, and I’ve always found Benno to be great to correspond with (and prompt too) whenever I’ve sent him results over the last few years.
The Open Challenge Championship changed hands five times! Note: as belt-owner I decided to drop the previous full title which was the “24/7 365 Open Challenge Championship (of the World)” as things change and evolve and it’s been six years and it was time to simplify the title’s title. Odhran Mac was OCC for 419 days, the longest single reign, and I think the future of the belt is more straight defences and strong champions as opposed to the first six years which included referees, merch men, a child and even me winning the belt. I of course reserve the right to go backy to the wacky should times change again but for now I think best to keep the legacy going that was started by Odhran.
Odhran was set to defend the OCC Title but couldn’t due to injury, and so was set to hand over the belt to his scheduled opponent Cian Noonan. Cian respectfully declined but this set off a chain of events / interruptions that seen Italian-Brazilian wrestler Bittersweet Josh, his scheduled opponent The Sem, Dragan the Serbian brawler, and his scheduled opponent Cambo Cray all make a challenge for the championship. A battle royal was decreed by popular vote and Bittersweet Josh officially ended Odhran’s 14 month reign as OCC. Italy now another nation in the Open Challenge Championship’s lineage, joining Japan, Spain and New Zealand as the more exotic birthplaces of title-holders.
Josh’s reign didn’t last long but did produce another first. The first time someone lost the belt by disqualification. Josh purposely got himself DQ’d vs. The Sem, only to realise he’d unintentionally cost himself the belt. As for Sem his reign was unfortunately an even shorter one as he was immediately challenged by Dragan (whom he’d eliminated from the battle royal – Serbian’s never forget nor forgive!) and while losing the belt without being pinned / submitted has happened before, The Sem is surely the first person in recent times to win a belt by DQ and lose it via count-out. In The Sem’s defence he barely stood a chance after being attacked by Josh right before the bout.
Dragan now the champion, he still had his scheduled opponent Cambo to face and face he did but in a Street Fight (again by popular decision, giving the people what they want). Cambo defeated Dragan to win the OCC for the 5th time but in another series of wrestling run-ins; Cambo was attacked by Bittersweet Josh, saved by Cian Noonan, challenged Josh to settle the score but was challenged too by Cian who’d yet to get an opportunity, and so the main event was made in classic wrestling style (see; during the show itself!): Cambo vs. Josh vs. Cian with the winner actually leaving Cookstown as the Open Challenge Champion.
In the main event Cambo and Cian wisely teamed to quickly eliminate the troublesome Josh, and then delivered the match of the day with Cian catching Cambo to pick up the victory and become the 80th OCC a week and half shy of the belt’s 6th birthday (an average of 13.33 title changes a year #stats). Bonus: Odhran Mac was the special guest referee for this.
There was one more twist for the title that weekend as Irish wrestling’s resident monster Killdozer won the belt from Cian in a Fatal 4 Way match at Stay True Wrestling’s Issue 2 event in Ballymoney the next day on 16th October. Cian wasn’t pinned but Killdozer still left as the new Open Challenge Champion and I can see his reign being a long one…
Elsewhere on the card in Cookstown were two matches I really enjoyed. For the first time in four years (August 2018 at the All-Ireland Wrestling Final the last time) it was the new look Explosive Pyro vs. the back in the black Fighting Fintonian. This match-up will always mean a lot to me as these two lads have been with me since the beginning; they were there on the first day in the first class at the BEST Wrestling School on October 4th 2015. Seven years later this match may turn out to be their last singles against one another and if it is what a perfect ending. This was also The Fintonian’s first match in over three years, and again if it’s his last, I think it be a fitting finale. Note: someone once told me seven is the number of completion and I’m all about that now.
A seeming end of one timeline, but the earliest of times still for John McCann and the Canary Kid who participated in a delightful seven minute exhibition match. John is 16 and Canary Kid is 14 (and I’m 31 and need to get me one of those walkers with the state of my knees after running Dublin Marathon!!) and when they first contacted me about being booked on the show I was very weary. I’ll admit I wasn’t convinced they could put in a worthwhile performance SHOCKINGLY I was wrong. It was watching the lads have a match in Letterkenny for Complete Anarchy Wrestling earlier in October that changed my mind and got them added to the card in Cookstown. All worked out wonderfully and the future is so bright for these two they’re going to need sunglasses! They’re not just good for their age, they’re solid for any age.
Seven matches. All hits. And all excellent gathering of grapplers. Same as our own Odhran Mac, I think Cian Noonan is one to watch not just in the future but right now. A great lad and great talent. As for our other guests; Bittersweet Josh HAS THE LOOK! He legit looks like a WWE Superstar already, and showed skills on the mic and in the ring too in Cookstown. Dragan is one of those guys who’ll be underrated but deserves much appreciation. I think he’s great and already seems to be getting well-earned opportunities on the Irish scene. And The Sem is one of my favourite wrestlers! He is fantastic, just a phenomenal talent. His character is unique, he plays it perfectly and while Cian won the audience vote at the end of the event to win the Diamond Shondell Cup, Sem was a close second. Cian, Josh, Dragan and Sem, keep an eye on these lads, I think they’re destined for great things. A shout-out too to Darragh Trulock – he acted as show security in Cookstown, however I had the fortune of reffing his match the following evening for Stay True in Ballymoney and he’s another one to watch! Indeed ***if*** I run another event Darragh is definitely due a bout, and Cian, Josh, Dragan and Sem a return. Loved working with these lads.
Of course great to have guests but my shows simply don’t happen without the support of the home team lads (and lady). Even injured Odhran was an asset on this show behind the scenes. Any promotion would be lucky to have an Odhran, so I’m very fortunate to have him on the crew. I also promised him that should anyone else get close to his reign of 419 day as OCC he can challenge them for the belt, and it stands. Cambo has long been my main event man, and it’s because he always delivers and on the card in Cookstown it was business as usual for one of Irish wrestling’s very best. Cambo also wrestled four different match types that one weekend, including what is surely Ireland’s only body bag match (Ballymoney loved it). As mentioned before it was a type of catharsis to be able to book one more Pyro vs. Fintonian match, and funny it actually was great to see Pyro with a new look and the Fintonian bring back the vintage attire! Fintonian also added a move to his arsenal (always a treat) in the chokeslam while Pyro won with his classic – the 028 (Ulster’s answer to the 619). And not forgetting the Fintonian’s one-time manager BRYCE STEELE. What a great name!!
Finally a huge thank you to Declan for being legit the best sound man we’ve ever had. The music was great throughout the show, and I’m not just saying that because my ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and rare ’00s hits were the interval music (and it was nice to enter again to the little snippet of Van Morrison’s “Bright Side of the Road”) but because it was so consistent throughout. Great work Declan. And here that door-lady Hayley is hot! I should compliment her on decorating the merch table with Buddha, John Wayne and Elvis statues and ask her out!
So in summary: great crew, great crowd, great story told, great venue and great feedback from all involved.
Will we be back? Don’t know if I will. I should really finish on that show as it was such a high. Better to go out strong than to come back and risk regrets! Might convince CAW or Stay True to take it over. But sure we’ll see craic.
The Wrestling Ireland 