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BLAH

THE BROOKER MAN
This one's for Todd

This one's for Todd.

First up, thanks to everyone that read my column last week. It's good to know that I'm reaching people, great to know I'm making them think and even better to know that I'm not sacrificing my 20/20 vision on this laptop screen for nothing. If you read my "That's Tazz with two Z's" piece last week you'll know I went off on a tirade about the whole "You Sold Out" issue.

A New York scholar by the name of Todd Thomas had this to say about the piece.

i note a lot of those never happy people around the internet too...oh, so and so was so cool when...and I don't understand it either. although I have to say, I've done it. not large scale, but just the other day I was watching Sunday Night Heat and I caught myself thinking that X had been so much cooler before...and it was jealousy, pure and simple. It was almost if I had felt there was something shared between this person and I, back when X was suffering through bumps in the indies and me through bumps of life. And now one of us has a six figure contract and the other one is in the same place he was before...
Not a good feeling. Not a rational feeling. But surely a common one.

todd

Good point and well made Todd. Hopefully I didn't come across as some malicious HTML wielding fascist out to tread on anyone that misses their favourite Indy star once they've jumped to the big time. In fact I can absolutely sympathise with what you're going through. There's a gent in the big two that I was a fan of long before he hit US cable. Someone I watched on TV in my formative years and watched from ringside for several months.

His name?

Dave "Fit" Finlay.

Back in the early '80s the British wrestling business still had a slot on TV every Saturday afternoon. Sadly it died a death because neither of the two main eventers (The late Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks) would be programmed with anyone but each other or put anyone over at all. WCW take note. In my case it wasn't either of these obese that caught my attention. No, it was a gentleman that made his way to the ring accompanied by Princess Paula and a chorus of boos. Finlay was a true villain and above all one of the most consistent wrestlers. The "Belfast Bruiser" knew how to play to the crowd, bending and breaking the rules with passion. Admittedly at that age, slightly south of ten years old, I didn't grasp a lot of what he did. All I knew was that I enjoyed the show he put on.

Eventually ITV decided that wrestling just wasn't a draw any more. At that point Finlay and I went our separate ways and wouldn't cross paths for many years.

Fast forward to 1992 and I've spent my first full year as a card carrying WWF and WCW fan. Imagine my joy to read in a local paper that there was a wrestling card taking place in Shepton Mallett, less than 10 miles away, that advertised none other than the British Bulldog. I was gobsmacked. I was amazed. I was there. Needless to say, despite Davey Boy Smith's status as a free agent in the winter of 1992, there was no sign of him at the card. The main event more or less passed me by at the time, though I did enjoy it. In hindsight I probably would have enjoyed it more if I knew then what I know now.

It was a tag match pitting a chap called Skull Murphy and Dave "Fit" Finlay against the British Bulldogs team of Johnny Smith and The Dynamite Kid. In hindsight it's mind-blowing considering the paths that I know three of the four have taken. Johnny Smith is now in All Japan and has flirted with ECW on more than one occasion. Dynamite is wheelchair bound and scraping a living on Her Majesty's government and anything he makes off his book. Skull Murphy, to be honest, could be living around the corner for all I know. I'll come to Finlay in a moment, though I'm sure he needs no explanation.

Over the next few years I would continue to see Finlay wrestle in and around Somerset. One of the finest matches I ever saw in person was a phenomenal bout across three falls with the vastly underrated Rob Brookside. At the Colston Hall in Bristol, a ringside seat was less than five pounds and I got much, much more than my money's worth from that main event. In the end "Fit" got the win with a typically heelish hair-pulling rollup and had dominated the entire match.

Then, once again, we went our separate ways. I went to college, lost my part-time job and became far too poor to even afford my £5 for the Colston hall. The next thing I heard about Finlay was his attack on Steve Regal on WCW Monday Nitro of all places. This led to the subsequent bloodbath at Uncensored '96 and wild Parking Lot brawl on a subsequent Nitro. It was amazing. Here was someone that I watched compete in a tiny leisure centre working on the highest rated show in the States. The very first match of the very first Nitro to make it onto TNT Europe?

Dave Finlay against the former four-time heavyweight champ Randy Savage.

Needless to say Finlay and Savage meshed immediately and had a good hard-hitting match. Stiff, solid and absolutely non-stop. It was a funny feeling to see Finlay walk down the aisle at some super-venue in the states but I was overjoyed to see it. I was less overjoyed though, when Savage connected with the infamous elbow off the top and put him down for the count. Still, at least he was going places.

From then on Finlay's been a consistent favourite of mine on Nitro and Thunder. Always willing to go out there and actually compete when more than a few of his peers seemed content to mince about and forget why they turned up in the first place. When he won the TV Title from Booker T in 1998 I was once again overjoyed, especially with the great matches he went on to have with Booker, Chris Benoit and others. There's a lot of satisfaction to be had in watching someone you've known all along make good. Even if you've never really known them.

Then it seemed like he fell from grace. The TV Title was gone and "Fit" spent what felt like a lifetime staring at the ceiling, putting over folks with half his talent and even less of his energy. His team with David Taylor, another Colston hall veteran, was good but never seemed to do anything other than fill out WCW Saturday Night tapings. The subsequent shuffle into the Hardcore division struck me as a phenomenal waste and the events that put him on the shelf with a leg injury seemed like fate backing me up.

Now he's back. The Doctors said he'd never compete again and he's proved them wrong. Personally I'd like to see him gunning for that TV title again, being a part of a feud that actually means something and basically having a chance to show some of the same fire that had fans from Blackpool to Bristol hissing, booing and jeering him as if he was the antichrist. What's he doing? Going nowhere fast in a strange mentor/pupil feud with Brian Knobbs that doesn't seem to make any sense.

I think it's a waste. I think it's a crime. Mind you, without wanting to be crude, telling WCW that they're wasting a talented wrestler seems to be like pissing in the ocean these days. I'll be lucky if it makes a ripple.

So yes Todd, I know exactly what you're getting at. I'm sure that there are plenty of people out there that do too. Maybe we should form a self help group. Maybe we should have helplines set up, produce pamphlets and shoot an instructional video. Maybe we should have an annual seminar and conference.

Nah, let's just go on watching the folks that entertained us in the 400 seater halls and let them go on entertaining us in the 40,000 seater arenas. We'll wish them luck, we'll wish them well and we'll go on enjoying ourselves.

Oh yeah and I hope WCW wakes up and gives the one and only "Belfast Bruiser" a chance to become one of the hottest heels in the outfit.

Till next time don't forget to check out the WWF Classics report this week and drop me a line if you want. Who knows, maybe you can inspire The Brooker Man.

Chris Brooker
freelance

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What is it? It's the place for UK wrestling fans to get together and talk about the WWF, WCW, ECW or damn near anything that has the letter W in it in some capacity. It's Yahoo's number 1 UK wrestling club and absolutely everyone is welcome.

Every Sunday there's the now obligatory Sunday Night Greet (pun intended) when Nat and myself will be there to talk about anything and everything with anyone and everyone. 7pm GMT

Starting with No Way Out every WWF PPV will have match by match results posted by myself. I'll also gladly do WCW PPVs when the tight fisted millionaire bastards at Turner see fit to actually let us see them over here. If anyone wants to cover the WCW events then that would be much appreciated by the millions ( And Millions ) of UK fans.

There's also going to be the chance to trade tapes, merchandise and even your creations for WWF 2000, WCW Mayhem, Attitude and so on.

Who knows, if things take off we might even be able to get a few exclusive guests and interviews. ( How about it CRZ? ) Join in anytime, the more the merrier and I guarantee this is one club you will not regret being a part of.

Click it. You know you want to. <http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/ukgrappler>

BLAH

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