Hamilton’s NXT UK Review 10.21.21

Quick Results
Aleah James pinned Xia Brookside in 4:15 (*½)
Dave Mastiff & Jack Starz defeated T-Bone & Primate via disqualification in 8:25 (**)
Jordan Devlin pinned Joe Coffey in 14:08 (***¼)

— If you’re on Twitter, give me a follow over on @IanWrestling – and check out the GoFundMe that’s still open for Larry’s family.

We’re starting late because they didn’t bother to announce last week that the show was going to get preempted for Crown Jewel. Yup. Anyway, we’re still live on tape with a small crowd in the BT Sport Studios in London, with Nigel McGuinness and Andy Shepherd on the call.

We’re told that Gallus have been barred from ringside tonight… and we’ve got a Supernova Sessions too.

Xia Brookside vs. Aleah James
This was set-up on a Nina Samuels skit last week…

Brookside’s changed her gear a little bit, adding some tartan, and she started by trading wristlocks with James. Aleah trips her down into a side headlock, but Brookside returns the favour, as James again headscissors her way free… only for Brookside to get free and throw a kick.

A snapmare keeps James down for a kick to the back, before an armbar saw Brookside stretch her opponent out. Aleah jawbreakers her way free, then hits leaping forearms and a dropkick to take Xia down. Brookside blocks a DDT, then ran in with a neckbreaker, before she looked for an Iconoclasm… James escapes by kicking Brookside away, then scored the pin with a roll-up. Short, as Xia Brookside continues to lose grip. Being a baddie is going to be more than mean mugging… *½

Brookside slaps away a handshake offer as James celebrates.

“Earlier this week” Emilia McKenzie’s with Meiko Satomura at the PC. Meiko’s quizzed about her title defence against Jinny, then went back to her calisthenics.

Kenny Williams is back around London’s Docklands. He’s trying to shrug off his Heritage Cup loss, and is playing the long game as he’s apparently going to be even badder. Cue the Bray Wyatt cockroaches from that WrestleMania match…

Jack Starz & Dave Mastiff vs. Symbiosis (Primate & T-Bone)
How long is it until “opposites attract” turn to “can they co-exist?” in this company?

Pretty Deadly are at the commentary table, introduced by Nigel McGuinness’ voice from the other side of the pond… T-Bone roughs up Starz into the corner to start, but Starz is back with dropkicks and armdrags to get a foothold in things. A fallaway slam from T-Bone turns it back around for a two-count as commentary seemed to be more interested in TikTok than what was going on. Yep, it’s one of those matches.

Primate’s wristlock is flipped out of as Starz boots him out of the ring, then landed some dropkicks as Mastiff came into the fray briefly. An armdrag from Starz keeps him ahead, as Mastiff tagged in to throw a headbutt as Symbiosis were on the back foot. Starz is back in, but gets dropped with a backbreaker, then thrown outside as Primate took advantage with a slam on the floor.

T-Bone heads out too, just to bring Starz back in for a powerbomb that gets a near-fall. Primate and T-Bone have their fun with Starz, double-teaming him in their corner before a stalling suplex from T-Bone dropped Starz in the middle of the ring. Back outside, Primate tries to cheapshot Starz, but ends up getting slammed instead as Starz then flew into T-Bone… and made the tag out.

Mastiff knocks T-Bone with forearms, then threw him with a capture suplex… Primate gets knocked off the apron as Mastiff just about got T-Bone over in a Finlay roll. Eddie Dennis distracts as T-Bone capitalised, but only gets met with a German suplex moments later… leading to a cannonball, before Dennis pulled Jack Starz off the apron, then jabbed him with a chair for the DQ. Post-match, Primate and T-Bone double-team Mastiff, before Oliver Carter and Ashton Smith run out for the save, as this feud must continue in some form! **

Vignette time for Amale. She carries the hopes of France on her shoulders, and declared that her loss to Emilia McKenzie was a fluke. She’ll be wrestling next week and looks to get back on track there.

“Earlier this week,” Charlie Dempsey is at the PC looking forward to the next challenge. His accent is absolutely not whatever you were expecting. Mark Coffey interrupts, and there you go… as Gallus brawl with Teoman and Rohan Raja elsewhere in the PC. C’mon Charlie, you should have whacked someone with your big club.

Supernova Sessions
They’ve moved the set to inside the ring, as Dar’s with Sha again.

Noam’s wrestling Tyler Bate for the Heritage Cup next week, so this week, Tyler’s on his chat show. Trent’s out with Tyler, and gets mocked mercilessly… Dar suggests that Tyler save face and relinquish the Heritage Cup now, rather than lose it next week. Of course they don’t, so Dar again pokes at Trent Seven, saying that Tyler’s carrying “dead weight.” In response, Tyler called out how he’s always beaten Dar, and it’ll be the same again next week. Even if he couldn’t get the crowd to sing along to his music when prompted…

Dar sucker-punches Tyler, then gets taken away by Sha as that counts as a pull-apart to build up for next week.

Jordan Devlin’s warming up backstage, but his headphones means that he misses Mark Coffey and Wolfgang stealing his jacket…

Next week: Rohan Raja vs. Mark Coffey, plus Tyler Bate defends the Heritage Cup vs. Noam Dar.

Joe Coffey vs. Jordan Devlin
Coffey’s out wearing Devlin’s jacket, but gets attacked by Jordan in the aisle.

They scrap around ringside, as Coffey rebounds from being thrown into the ropes, throwing uppercuts around the guard rails before they finally hit the ring, with a slingshot corkscrew plancha landing from Devlin.

Coffey strikes first at the bell, but gets taken down with a side headlock, before Coffey pushed free… then tripped Devlin on the rebound. A misdirection crossbody from Coffey has Devlin down, leading to a backbreaker, then a sidewalk slam for a two-count that barely drew some applause.

A Corning hold from Coffey’s hiptossed away… but he clings on, then shoved off an attempted headscissor escape from Devlin, before Devlin manages to take Coffey into the ring post. Devlin followed with a dropkick to take Coffey into the ring post, which he was then stretched around.

Back inside, a Kitchen sink knee drops Coffey, with an elbow drop following for some two-counts – and some pantomime boos. An Irish whip bounced Coffey out of the corners as the crowd started to get behind Coffey, who absorbed some strikes before being left in a heap.

Devlin follows with a Cobra twist on Coffey, but it’s broken up with a hiptoss before Devlin countered a belly-to-belly with some bodyscissors to Coffey’s damaged ribs. Coffey powers up to back into the corner to break the hold, but Devlin heads up top… and leaps into an uppercut.

Coffey gets back on top with a shoulder tackle, then a leaping shoulder block for a two-count, before a pop-up slam dropped Devlin for another near-fall. Devlin elbows away a waistlock, then returned with a uranage/standing moonsault combo, before going back up top, where he’s again caught.

Devlin slips out and pulls Coffey down, only to be met with a springboard crossbody that nearly wins it as commentary’s slipping into the main event screaming. That really doesn’t work when the crowd’s obviously fighting to get into it. A slingshot cutter from Devlin keeps things even, as Coffey rolled to the outside for respite, only to be met with an apron PK and an Asai moonsault from the Irishman.

Third time wasn’t the charm for Devlin on the top rope though, as Coffey’s belly-to-belly superplex brings him down hard, as the pair trade blows. Coffey boxes Devlin into the corner, then laid out Jordan with an elbow for a two-count, before a Glasgow Send-Off lands. Devlin headbutts away an attempt at Awra Best for the Bells, then went up top for a fourth time, finally landing a 450 splash to the ribs of Coffey for a near-fall. Devlin followed that up with a Devlinside, and that’s enough for the win. A hard-fought main event, and since that makes it 1-1, we’re guaranteed a rubber match down the line. Decent, but it’ll not convert many new fans. ***¼

6.4

The final score: review Average

The 411

I wasn’t expecting the drop-off to be THAT quick. With A-Kid/Dragunov having been unloaded - and little behind it as a clear number two at this point - the next few weeks of shows in the can may well be treading this path. I bloody hope it’s not though...