ATTACK! kicked off their new year in front of a sold-out crowd, with new champion Nico Angelo making his first defence…
Quick Results
Eddie Dennis pinned Nino Bryant in 15:20 (***¼)
Chip McSwings pinned Will Kroos in 10:17 (**¾)
Splits McPins pinned Danny Jones, Kid Lykos, Kid Lykos II, ELIJAH & Jay Joshua to win the ATTACK! 24/7 Championship in 13:19 (***¼)
Chip McSwings pinned Splits McSwings to win the ATTACK! 24/7 Championship
Dani Luna pinned Safire Reed in 12:18 (***½)
Old Poppa Sunflower & Sonny the Sunflower pinned James Ellis & Mulligan in 14:30 (**¼)
Nico Angelo pinned Leon Slater to retain the ATTACK! Championship in 27:44 (***)
We’re coming live… actually live for once, via YouTube from the Cathays Community Centre in Cardiff. My God, that place has changed a little since the last time I was there, admittedly coming up to seven years ago…
Nico Angelo’s out to open the show – he won the ATTACK! title from Wild Boar at the MistleTour last month… unfortunately, this being the British independents, his mic isn’t patched into the live mix, so good luck picking up bits without having the volume up super loud. Nico’s got an open challenge for his first title defence later on…
We then get a video package on Nino Bryant’s run in ATTACK! so far… he beat Eddie Dennis last time out on the MistleTour in an upset, and we’ve got a somewhat conflicted Eddie Dennis here in the VT.
Commentary throughout the night comes from Sean Thorne and a rotating cast of characters…
Nino Bryant vs. Eddie Dennis
Mark Andrews fills us in on commentary on the “Extra Life” that Nino had won – then given to Nico Angelo last month… it was basically a get out of jail free card, that Angelo then used to win the ATTACK! title…
We start with Nino trying to fight out of a wristlock from Eddie… when he did, Eddie’s crucifix pin forced an early two-count. Nino’s gotta leap up to grab a side headlock on Eddie, and while the size difference is more than just height here, he’s able to take Eddie down with it, only for a shove off to lead to a shoulder tackle in return.
Nino flips out of a back body drop, but Eddie stays on him, catching a leapfrog only for Bryant to wheelbarrow Eddie for a near-fall. An armdrag frees Nino from a crucifix, before he looked for a wristlock into a rope-walk armdrag. Eddie shoves him off the top rope, but Nino’s able to recover to hit the armdrag anyway, then a dropkick for a two-count, as Eddie proceeded to powder.
A plancha from Nino’s caught and turned into a swinging side slam onto the side of the ring, which was good for a two-count. Back inside, satellite headscissors from Nino were eventually caught and turned into a backbreaker as Eddie learned from his last meeting… from here, Eddie looked to bully Nino and make the size difference count, popping Nino with a Manhattan drop before Nino somehow found a way back through with a diving boot.
Eddie’s forearm stops Nino from springing around in the corner, leading to a deadlift superplex back into the ring. Nino absorbs a forearm as he tried to fight back into the match, but another forearm decks him… Nino tries his luck with a series of forearms, only to get caught in a ripcord forearm in return.
Chops follow from Eddie as he kept Nino at close quarters, but an overhead kick from Nino finds its mark. As did a superkick from Eddie, whose follow-up Severn Bridge was turned into a Code Red for a near-fall for Nino. Nino tries to add a moonsault out of the corner, but he manages to take Eddie outside with headscissors out of a Next Stop Driver counter. Dives follow, but Nino went to the well too often and had to counter another swinging side slam, eventually coming back with a swinging DDT off the apron instead.
Eddie’s a dead weight on the outside, but Nino rolls in and looks to take the count-out… Eddie beats the count, but Nino’s right on him with a moonsault for another two-count. A running dropkick meets Eddie in the corner as Bryant pushed on, only to get caught with a Severn Bridge powerbomb… a second one takes him into the buckles, but Eddie pulls up the count at two? A Next Stop Driver looks to follow, but Nino slips out into a mounted sleeperhold, squeezing Eddie out before some hammer elbows left Nino open.
Eddie’s legs are starting to go on him, as Nino’s able to return with another satellite DDT… but Eddie counters it with a roll-up, grabbing a handful of tights… and there’s the win as Eddie snuck one out through some rather questionable means. A pretty good opener, with Nino looking a little rough around the edges, but I’m liking the teacher/student story going on here. ***¼
Chip McSwings vs. Will Kroos
We’ve got James Ellis on commentary for this…
It’s a debut on a standalone ATTACK! show for Kroos, as the Cardiff crowd tore into McSwings for representing a “boring” sport. Chip tries to lift Kroos early, but is easily dumped with a slam… and doesn’t learn much as an attempted Irish whip didn’t budge the big lad. A slap is shrugged off by Kroos, who squashes Chip into the corners ahead of a MURDEROUS back senton.
The pair end up outside, with Chip’s caddy Larry causing a distraction as Kroos got posted. Larry The Caddy tries to interfere some more, allowing Chip to hit a Rough Ryder/Radio Silence back inside for… a one-count. Larry gets involved again, choking Kroos in the ropes, but another quick slam drops McSwings, only for him to come back with Dusty punches and a chop.
Kroos has a chop of his own though, only for Chip to take out Kroos’ knee as he finally took the big man down to size. A Dragon screw to the arm swings Kroos’ arm into the mat, only for Kroos to come right back with a pop-up Samoan drop. Hmm.
Clotheslines bounce Chip around, while a back body drop flung him around ahead of a cannonball in the corner. A spinebuster’s next as Kroos was steamrolling through Chip, only for McSwings to find a way back with almost a pop-up Rough Ryder. That’s good for a near-fall, but Chip’s caught up top and thrown down by Kroos, whose murderous clothesline almost put a hole in one Chip.
Chip has to kick out from a sit-out powerbomb, then from almost a Shadow Driver. Larry the Caddy throws his golf club into the ring, but Kroos caught it… he knocks Larry off the apron, only for Chip to get and use the club, then snatch a win with a senton bomb off the top. **¾
ATTACK 24/7 Championship: Kid Lykos II vs. Jay Joshua vs. Danny Jones vs. Splits McPins vs. ELIJAH vs. Kid Lykos
Scramble time to close out the first-half main event… with the Kid Lykoses coming out separately and with different music for the original. Oh, and it’s for the returning 24/7 title, which was once held by a literal child…
So as is the way with scrambles, this was all action, with Danny Jones clearing house early on, but things calm down with ELIJAH taking Jones down with headscissors and dropkicks. Splits McPins takes over, but Jay Joshua steamrolls through him, landing a back suplex before Kid Lykos II came in and scored a satellite into a ‘rana.
Kid Lykos comes in to help double-team Joshua, as everyone got stacked up onto Joshua, with Lykos putting his tag partner on top of the pile ahead of a back senton off the top rope. Lykos can’t follow-up on most of the people from the pile, so he back body drops Lykos II into Danny Jones on the outside, making sure of it with a dive as we all fall down.
Back inside, ELIJAH, Joshua and McPins take over… a ‘rana from McPins takes the big man out, but Jones comes back in with a back cracker to Joshua. A Kitchen Sink knee to ELIJAH’s added to with a Falcon arrow on Lykos for a near-fall. Lykos II telegraphs the brainbuster and eats a sleeper suplex, before Jones stacked up ELIJAH and Lykos into a double half crab.
We’ve a chained up sleeperhold as Danny Jones looked to have it in the bag, but Allie McPins pops up for a distraction, allowing everyone else to get back to their feet as dropkicks from everyone but Joshua took Danny outside. An Asai DDT from Lykos II took care of McPins before he dove on the pile on the outside… where we got the El Generico tope through the corner DDT on the floor.
Back inside, Splits hits a tornado DDT to Joshua, then went up top for a big splash… but it’s not enough! The Lykii take their shots, but Lykos II ends up hitting an accidental DDT to his partner thanks to the hands of ELIJAH, before a clothesline to the back of the head of Lykos II looked to have ELIJAH on his way. An Electric Chair facebuster has Splits out, while the Dangerbuster almost put away Lykos… only for Joshua to break up the Parade of Moves. A wheelbarrow German suplex from Joshua almost wins it, before a rear spin kick wiped out Lykos II… with Danny Jones almost winning the title as Splits broke up the pin in the nick of time.
Splits and Jones trade shots, before Allie McPins came in… and got shoved aside. Splits has to kick out from an O’Connor roll, before a satellite DDT from Allie finds its mark.. She heads up top and hits a wild moonsault into the pile, leaving Splits free to hit a spinning 2K Driver to get the win. ***¼
Splits can’t celebrate too long though as post-match, Chip McSwings ran out and attacked Splits… and we have our second new champion in as many minutes. Larry’s getting some rough treatment by Chip here… Chip brags about his win, then offered to take Allie home with him. Of course, Allie slaps Chip, before Chip handed his club for Larry to do the dirty work and lay out Allie with it.
Safire Reed vs. Dani Luna
According to Cagematch, these two have only met once before in a singles match… for ATTACK! last April… and will be facing off again for Rev Pro next month.
Opening with a lock-up, Luna takes down Reed in the early going, only for Safire to use the ropes to make a comeback with a Tiger Feint into an armdrag, followed with a springboard ‘rana and a springboard European uppercut. A dropkick through the ropes meets Luna on the outside, where Dani turned it around with a back suplex onto the edge of the ring, while a running kick sent Reed back inside.
Back inside, a fallaway slam keeps Luna ahead, while a sliding lariat almost won it for Dani in short order. Staying ahead, Luna chains together suplexes a la Eddie Guerrero, but Reed stops the hattrick with a knee strike before she got caught with a Falcon arrow for a near-fall. Reed tries to get back into it, but a clothesline snuffed her out for a near-fall, while a diving kick cut off another attempted comeback.
Reed finally manages to chain some offence together, scoring a ripcord clothesline, then a release German suplex to fold Luna in half. Luna retaliates with a wheelbarrow German suplex though, before a Mistica into a crossface looked to have Reed back on top. Luna powers out of the hold, but gets caught in the ropes with a knee from Reed, who added a springboard stomp the back for a near-fall.
Luna powerbombs Reed out of a step-up knee strike, then added a second one… but it’s not enough as Dani then looked for an elevated German superplex back into the ring. Reed manages to slip out though, then hit a German superplex of her own out of the corner, while a Torpedo Moscau-like headbutt and a springboard cutter almost put Luna away. We’re back to the crossface as Reed forced Luna to crawl to the ropes for a break, before Reed got shoved off the top rope to the outside.
That’s the set-up as Luna went for the elevated German suplex back into the ring, bouncing Reed back into the ring with a bump, before the Luna Landing scored the hard-fought win. ***½
James Ellis & Mulligan vs. Father & Son Flower (Old Poppa Sunflower & Sonny The Sunflower)
Mulligan’s acting as Ellis’ hired muscle here – and given Mulligan towers over virtually everyone around these parts, it’s a familiar dynamic.
We start with Ellis and Old Poppa Sunflower hitting the ropes, leading to a shoulder tackle from Poppa, then some drop toe holds, one of which took Ellis into the corner. Tags bring in Mulligan and Sonny, with Sonny playing keepaway until a tijeras was blocked.
A dropkick proves more effective against Mulligan, as did a kick to the shin, before he almost slammed Sonny out of his Sunflower. Ellis wants in now, but he’s instantly caught with an armdrag as the flowers took over with repeated double axehandles off the top to Ellis’ arm. Mulligan’s back as he looked to squish Old Poppa, who was having trouble with his gear.
Mulligan’s elbow drop gets a two-count, before Ellis came in and almost lost Old Poppa… before Mulligan stopped the tag out by pulling Sonny down off the apron. A spinebuster from Ellis sees him capitalise for a two-count, but Poppa manages to throw Ellis into Mulligan’s boot before he made the tag out.
Sonny gets clears house with clotheslines, but a trip up top is for nought as Mulligan pulled Ellis to the outside. A tope follows as Sonny shook off an ankle problem, one that almost occurred again after Sonny crushed Ellis after a missile dropkick. It’s good for a near-fall as Sonny looked to add to it… Old Poppa tags in and hits a Codebreaker to trigger a Code Red from Sonny for a near-fall.
Sonny’s back, but things go awry as the Sunflowers’ double-team is broken apart by Ellis, leading to Mulligan chokeslamming Sonny into an Angle Slam by Ellis. Sonny’s not legal, so there’s no pin, and Sonny’s able to bring the legal Poppa for a roll-up for a near-fall as things look to be going awry.
In the end, an eye poke from Ellis allows him to slam Poppa, but Ellis takes too long bragging and misses a standing moonsault. Poppa fakes one out, then caught Ellis in a Boston crab. Mulligan’s back to break it up, but Sonny’s mounted guillotine stops that as Poppa’s Boston crab ends up getting broken apart.
Ellis’ errant leaping knee wipes out Mulligan, and from there it’s curtains for him as a satellite DDT from Sonny and a Deep Six for the win. This went a little too long for my taste, and you’d assume the Mulligan/Ellis partnership may be beginning to erode after results like this. **¼
ATTACK! Championship: Nico Angelo (c) vs. Leon Slater
Slater answered Nico’s open challenge – prompting the speculation he’d be “off to TNA” with the ATTACK! title.
Slater’s distracted by someone in the crowd early on, but gets the upper hand with a waistlock takedown as Angelo was taken into the corner. The pace picks up as Nico swings with a buzzsaw kick, forcing Leon to bail into the crowd. Back inside, Leon cartwheels out of some headscissors, then caught Angelo with a chop on the top rope before he was caught with a flying ‘rana from Nico in return.
A tope followed as the champion wiped out Slater, then kept up the offensive with kicks and uppercuts back inside. Leon’s kept grounded with a neck crank, while a slam and an elbow off the middle rope gave Nico a near-fall. Chops take Leon around the corners, before Leon burst back with a handspring back elbow, then a lofty plancha to Nico on the outside.
Back inside, a leaping frog splash gets Slater a two-count as he began to take control, only for a twisting suplex to be blocked, with Slater quickly recovering to take Angelo into the corner with a Dragon screw. Nico’s taken into a Tree of Woe from there as Slater’s running kick targeted the bad knee, as did a kick as he tried to kick Nico’s leg out of his leg.
Slater’s caught with a one-man Spanish Fly out of nowhere as he went up top, following up with a hesitation dropkick into the corner as the champion was being hampered by that knee. A pull-up has Slater in a Fireman’s carry, while a second go around sees Nico hit a pull-up death valley driver for a near-fall.
The pair trade strikes from there, going back-and-forth in the corners as Slater’s running dropkick caught Angelo unawares. Both men keep going, landing kicks at the same time as they were forced to start again. A chop from Angelo has Leon on the back foot briefly, but the challenger’s able to duck a Cactus Jack knee, sending Angelo to the outside for a tope… but it’s caught and turned into a camera-killing rolling death valley driver on the floor.
Nico takes things back inside, then made his way up top… but the bad knee delays his ascent as he ends up getting shoved down to the floor. Slater takes his spot with an over-the-post senton into Angelo in the crowd. Back inside, a leg lariat gets Slater a near-fall as Angelo was forced to dive onto Leon’s legs to stop anything else be added.
Instead, Slater pounds away on Angelo, then hit a grounded Dragon screw to the bad knee before Angelo hit back out of nowhere with a Michinoku-ish driver. A trip up top leads to a shooting star press on Leon for a near-fall, only for Leon to go back to the bum knee as a set-up for the twister suplex. A low leg lariat goes through Angelo for another near-fall, as a half crab forces Nico to crawl towards the ropes for the break.
Slater stays on the leg as a springboard frog splash to the leg ended with… Nico getting the knees up. We get the Lesnar/Undertaker double sit-up as we get one more burst of strikes, leading to a Blue Thunder bomb from Leon. A Swanton 450 looks to follow, but Nico rolls away, then came close with a roll-up, before see-saw roll-ups ended with Nico snatching the win with a small package. As a match, this went way too long – with the crowd seemingly struggling in the middle… surprise Leon Slater is one thing, but I don’t think the crowd were exactly prepared for a slowed-down Slater here. ***
We’re not done though… because Jay Joshua comes out as the live feed’s framerate can be counted in seconds per frame. Bad timing for the stream to crap out, as it’d been impeccable til that point. He wipes out Angelo with that rear spin kick, then posed over him with the ATTACK! belt, and I guess we’re going to Joshua and Angelo for the title?
ATTACK!’s return last year perhaps went under the radar of some observers, but ATTACK’s more or less slotted back into the scene with ease. An overly-long main event aside, tonight’s card was a good mix of matches with names perhaps better known elsewhere on the scene, and a lot of up and comers that are well worth keeping an eye on.