Written by: Bob Colling
Extreme Championship Wrestling House Show
Date: 11/15/1997
From: Glasgow, DE
Bill Alfonso starts the show cutting a promo in the ring telling the fans that he’s a winner. Alfonso promotes his men, Rob Van Dam and Sabu having spent the day with Vince McMahon. Alfonso is wearing a WWF hat and was told that ECW is a unsafe working conditions for Sabu. So, Sabu is with Vince at his mansion. If the fans want a refund then they can go to the ticket place to get it because he doesn’t want them anyway.
Beulah makes her way out to confront Alfonso. Rob Van Dam appears and attacks Tommy Dreamer from behind. The BWO comes running out, but RVD rolls Dreamer into the ring. RVD tosses a chair into the ring and taunts the fans. Dreamer whacks RVD over the head with a chair. Alfonso tries for a chair shot, but Dreamer blocks it. RVD leaps off the top and kicks a chair into Dreamer’s face. RVD follows up with a spinning leg drop to Dreamer.
Opening Contest: Justin Credible vs. Tommy Dreamer: Credible and Jason act like they are checking on Dreamer as everyone leaves the ring. They instead hit a double side Russian leg sweep and Credible chokes Dreamer after a few stomps. Credible continues to work over Dreamer with strikes and taunts Dreamer on the microphone. Credible says that Dreamer is the innovator of laying on his back. Credible sends Dreamer into the guard railing ribs first. Credible hammers away on Dreamer for a moment and sends Dreamer into the railing again. Jason gets a few cheap shots in on the floor. Credible dropkicks a seated Dreamer to maintain control of the contest. Credible works over Dreamer in the corner with stomps and strikes. Dreamer blocks a backdrop and clotheslines Credible over the top to the floor. Dreamer nails Credible with a baseball slide dropkick. Jason stops Dreamer with a boot on the floor to help out Credible. Credible connects with a spinning DDT and taunts the crowd before getting a two count.
Credible has a chair on the mat and hits a suplex onto the chair for a two count. Credible goes to the top rope with a chair and gets the chair kicked into his face. Dreamer avoids a splash in the corner and kicks Credible onto the ropes groin first. Dreamer shakes the ropes for a moment. Credible flips in the corner and Dreamer spikes Credible with the DDT, but Jason pulls the referee out of the ring on the cover attempt. Beulah tries to slap Jason, but he blocks it. Dreamer has Jason on the apron and Credible almost wins with a rollup. Credible dropkicks Dreamer on the knee as Beulah gets on the apron. Credible brings Beulah into the ring and Jason joins. Beulah hits a double low blow and along with Dreamer hits a double DDT. Dreamer covers Credible while Beulah covers Jason for the three count. (*1/2. They didn’t do a whole lot and lacked some brawling or any weapon usage. I know their feud doesn’t really heat up until 1998, but this could have been better.)
Second Contest: Erin O’Grady vs. Spike Dudley: O’Grady would go on to be known as Crash Holly in the WWF. Dudley takes O’Grady to the mat with a headlock, but they quickly have a standoff. The fans are quick to chant boring for this match. O’Grady avoids a monkey flip and gets a headlock on Spike. O’Grady head scissors Spike to the mat and keeps arm control. Spike knee drops O’Grady’s arm and goes back to arm control. O’Grady snapmares Dudley and wraps his legs around his arms for a two count. Spike avoids a snapmare by dropping O’Grady to the mat and soon drops O’Grady’s arm over the top rope. Spike leaps off the top to hit a missile dropkick. Spike nearly wins with a rollup. Spike almost wins after a springboard, but O’Grady sends Spike through the ropes to the floor. O’Grady sends Spike into the railing as the fans are making fun of O’Grady wearing a cloverleaf on his gear calling him “lucky charms.” O’Grady nearly wins with a springboard sunset flip and gets a rollup for a two count. O’Grady dropkicks Spike for another near fall. O’Grady has a rollup, but Spike kicks out at two.
Spike takes a charging O’Grady down to the mat with an arm bar, but O’Grady got to the ropes. O’Grady powerbombs Spike for a two count. O’Grady tries for a suplex, but Spike counters with a springboard bulldog out of the corner for a near fall. O’Grady counters a head scissors by driving Spike to the mat face first for another two count. Erin misses a splash in the corner and Spike has a rollup for the win. (*1/2. The crowd really didn’t give these guys a chance as they crapped on the match within a minute of the start. Once they got out of their usual slow pace mat wrestling centric action, I think O’Grady showcased some skill that impressed the fans, but it was impossible for them to get out of the hole they were in.)
Third Contest: Chris Chetti & Mikey Whipwreck vs. Jerry Lynn & Tommy Rogers: Chetti and Rogers kickoff the match with Rogers taking Chetti to the mat to control the arm. Rogers hammers away on Chetti and tags in Lynn. Rogers drop toe holds Chetti allowing Lyn to hit a leg drop. Lynn scoop slams Chetti followed by a knee drop and keeps a headlock on Chetti. Lynn shoulder blocks Chetti and tags Rogers back into the contest. Chetti hip tosses Rogers and they have a standoff after an awkward arm drag. Whipwreck tags into the match and Rogers takes Whipwreck down to keep leg control and switches to an STF. Rogers forearms Whipwreck and delivers an atomic drop. Lynn and Rogers hit a side slam/leg drop combo on Whipwreck for a two count. Lynn connects with a leaping back elbow strike to Whipwreck and tags Rogers back into the contest. Whipwreck is taken over with a double snap suplex. Rogers dropkicks a seated Whipwreck. Rogers decks Chetti off the apron. Rogers sends Whipwreck to the floor and Whipwreck hits the railing. Lynn sends Whipwreck into the railing, as well.
Rogers drops Whipwreck over the railing chest first and keeps control of the contest. Rogers avoids Whipwreck in the corner, but Whipwreck avoids a top rope move to knee lift Rogers. Whipwreck springboards off the ropes to knock Rogers to the floor. Whipwreck baseball slides Rogers into the guard railing. Chetti tags into the match and kicks Rogers in the midsection. Chetti back elbows Rogers for a near fall. Chetti kicks Rogers to avoid a backdrop. Chetti nearly wins with a rollup out of the corner. Whipwreck dropkicks Rogers leading to another near fall. Whipwreck dropkicks a seated Rogers on the back, which the fans crap on. Whipwreck boots Rogers in the corner but misses a clothesline. Rogers hits a back suplex, but Whipwreck knee lifts him to the floor. Lynn kicks Whipwreck followed by a bulldog. Lynn powerbombs Whipwreck and is stomped on Chetti. Lynn elbows Whipwreck while Chetti and Rogers brawl on the floor. Chetti sends Rogers into the guard railing while Lynn slams Whipwreck.
Chetti crotches Lynn on the top rope and Whipwreck goes to the middle rope, but Rogers has Whipwreck on his shoulders allowing Lynn to hit a crossbody off the top for a near fall. All four men are in the ring when Chetti nails Lynn with a spinning heel kick. Lynn is clotheslined to the floor. Whipwreck takes Lynn out with a crossbody. Rogers plants Chetti with the Un-Prettier for the win. (**. A decent match, but it’s clear that the Delaware crowd wants hardcore action and not good wrestling matches. This was fine for what it was, but it’s not what this crowd wants, at all.)
Fourth Contest: ECW Tag Team Champions Tracy Smothers & Little Guido vs. Axl Rotten & Balls Mahoney: Guido and Mahoney kickoff the tag title match. Guido bails to the floor after kicking Mahoney from behind and hugs Tommy Rich on the floor. Mahoney drops Guido over his knee with a gut buster and bites his ass. Mahoney hip tosses Guido followed by a leg drop leading to Guido bailing to the floor. Mahoney sends Smothers and Guido into each other and Rotten hits a baseball slide on both men. Mahoney shoves Smothers out of the corner as they are working at a slow pace for the most part. Smothers knee lifts Mahoney followed by several right hands. Mahoney plants Smothers with a sit down powerbomb. Smothers misses a heel kick, but hits a on second attempt. Mahoney superkicks Smothers coming out of the corner for a two count. Axl punches Smothers from the apron and Smothers regroups with Guido in the corner hugging around his waist. Rotten rams their heads together and keeps control on Smothers. Smothers knee lifts Rotten from behind and Guido gets a few shots in from the floor.
Rich sends Rotten into the guard railing and Rich drops Rotten over the railing groin first. Guido rolls Rotten into the ring, but the referee isn’t there for the cover attempt. Rotten is chopped by the champs a few times and yanked down to the mat followed by a double elbow drop for a two count. Guido forearms Rotten to the mat managing a two count. Mahoney tries to get involved and is held back by the referee as Rotten is double teamed. Rotten continues to be worked over by Rich with cheap shots from the floor and Guido from the apron. Smothers uppercuts Rotten and they deliver a few chops, but Rotten fights back with a double clothesline. Guido trips Rotten and stomps away on him. Mahoney continues to try and get involved, but is stopped by the referee again. Guido goes to the top rope, but is crotched by Rotten. Smothers accidentally splashes Guido, who was in a tree of woe. Mahoney gets the hot tag and cleans house with strikes and a double clothesline.
Smothers is clotheslined over the top to the floor and Mahoney has Guido for the Nutcracker Suite, but the referee is knocked down. A second referee, Jeff Jones, comes out and has an FBI shirt under his referee shirt and declines to count a fall. Dudley Boys come out to attack Mahoney and they hit the 3D! Guido is put on top and pins Mahoney to retain the titles. (*1/2. Once again they worked the style of match that nobody really wanted to see. The crowd responded to Rotten and Mahoney better than they usually do in other areas. This may have gone on a little too long, but it wasn’t boring all that much.)
Dudley Boys continue to beat on Mahoney and Rotten with the FBI until New Jack and Kronus come down to the ring and that leads us to the next match.
Fifth Contest: New Jack & Kronus vs. Dudley Boys: As you’d expect there’s a lot of weapon shots to the head. Dudley’s hit a 3D on New Jack, but the referee’s fight preventing a count. Kronus drops Bubba with a spinning heel kick and a top rope 450 splash for the win. (NR. The match was very short, but Kronus still bled because that’s what he does. It’s fine for being a quick brawl and a win for the face team. I dislike when it’s an extended segment that takes forever.)
Sixth Contest: Chris Candido vs. Bud Luscious: Luscious backs Candido into the corner, but cleanly backs away to start the match. Luscious continues with an arm drag. Candido hip tosses Luscious and taunts the crowd saying they need to shut up so he can concentrate. Candido scoop slams Luscious and the fans are getting bored the match already. Candido gets on the microphone and rips on the fans for a few moments. Candido promises he won’t come back to the state if they don’t shut up, and they like that. Candido chops Luscious in the corner a few times to keep control. Luscious fires back with a few chops and hip tosses Candido out of the corner followed by a scoop slam causing Candido to roll to the floor. Luscious shoulder blocks Candido and kicks Candido on a leap frog attempt. Bud takes Candido over with a head scissors and keeps arm control. Candido punches Luscious in the corner a few times to break the hold.
Bud head scissors Candido out of the corner and tries for a hurricanrana, but Candido counters with a sit down powerbomb. Candido lifts Bud up for a vertical suplex and drives Bud down to the mat. Candido spikes Bud with a piledriver for a near fall. Candido hammers away on Candido with a few right hands and a scoop slam. Candido heads to the top rope, but Luscious stops Candido with a press slam to the mat. Luscious goes to the top and sunset flips Candido leading to a few rollup attempts. Candido stops Luscious with a kick to the head. Candido slams Luscious before heading to the top rope. Candido misses a diving headbutt and Luscious delivers a few strikes. Luscious backdrops Candido and goes to the top again. Candido slaps Luscious on the top rope. Candido hits a superplex for the win. (*1/2. I was surprised by how much offense got, but he did a fairly well with it. The action was basic all things considered and the crowd wasn’t buying into Bud as a serious threat to win the match.) After the match, the fans are chanting for Taz, but Candido sits on the top turnbuckle saying he’s starting to like Delaware. He’s going to stay out in the ring until someone comes out.
Danny Morrison, who would later be known as Danny Doring, comes out. Candido wants a champion and that brings out ECW Television Champion Taz. Candido isn’t happy with that, though. Candido bails to the floor and doesn’t return. Candido gets a microphone standing on the apron. Candido believes he should be the champion after beating Taz up on the last PPV. Candido would fight Taz tonight, but everyone knows that Morrison is the number one contender.
Seventh Contest: ECW Television Champion Taz vs. Danny Morrison: Taz threatens to break Morrison’s neck after a headlock takeover and Morrison got to the ropes. Taz put a top wrist lock on Morrison, but Morrison reached the ropes again. Taz hip tosses Morrison and locks in an arm bar on the mat. Taz tosses Morrison overhead with a suplex. Taz kicks Morrison and gets on a microphone to call out a fan to fight him. Taz hits an overhead belly to belly suplex. Morrison ducks a clothesline and Taz hits a double under hook suplex and quickly wins with the Taz Mission. (NR. A complete squash and exactly what the fans wanted to see.) After the match, Candido attacks Taz with stomps on the mat and a powerbomb. Candido gets a microphone and taunts Taz by slapping his face. Taz tosses Candido with another suplex and Candido is hurting on the microphone. Taz slaps Candido before leaving the ring.
Eighth Contest: Rob Van Dam vs. The Sandman: RVD attacks Sandman during his entrance sending Sandman over the railing into the crowd with a chair shot off the apron as Sandman stood on a chair drinking. RVD takes Sandman out with a somersault dive off the railing into the crowd onto Sandman. RVD continues to beat on Sandman with a chair shot. RVD tosses Sandman back to the ringside area. Bill Alfonso has a kendo stick and acts like he’s going to use it and doesn’t. Sandman drops RVD gut first over the railing and leaps off the apron to leg drop RVD! Sandman sends RVD into the railing back first and scoop slams RVD on the floor. Sandman slams a table onto RVD. Sandman rolls RVD into the ring to officially start the bout.
Sandman drops RVD over the top rope gut first and hits a somersault leg drop from the apron. RVD boots Sandman in the corner and misses a springboard kick hitting the referee on accident. Jeff Jones comes back out as RVD crotches himself on the ropes. Sandman has a kendo stick and Jones stops him from using it. RVD hits a spin kick and a frog splash off the top leading to a fast count for the win. (*. That was a horrible finish. The brawling was fun, but that was a really bad finish.) After the match, Sandman plants Jones with a DDT.
Main Event: ECW World Champion Bam-Bam Bigelow vs. Shane Douglas: The crowd is fired up for this main event, which is the same match for November To Remember. Bigelow shoves Douglas away a few times, but Douglas hammers away on Bigelow to start the match. Bigelow decks Douglas with a few right hands and delivers a splash in the corner. Bigelow tosses Douglas across the ring. Bigelow misses a splash in the corner and Douglas tries for a belly to belly, but Bigelow avoids it and powerbombs Douglas for a two count. Bigelow works over the left arm of Douglas for a few moments. Douglas chops Bigelow several times, but is stopped by a shoulder block and headbutts to the chest. Bigelow drops Douglas over the top rope groin first and dropkicks Douglas onto a table at ringside, which didn’t break. Bigelow rams Douglas head onto the table. Bigelow puts Douglas through the table with a front suplex on the floor. Bigelow tosses Douglas back into the ring from the apron. Bigelow stomps away on Douglas a few times.
Bigelow yanks Douglas off the ropes and gets distracted by Francine. Candido comes out and Bigelow misses a splash in the corner as Douglas moved out of the way. Douglas botches a middle rope bulldog attempt and the fans let him here it. Douglas tries for a suplex, but Bigelow counters with one of his own for a two count. Douglas low blows Bigelow in the corner and delivers a few more stomps. Douglas chops Bigelow several times and clotheslines Bigelow to the floor. Douglas baseball slides Bigelow into the guard railing. Douglas grabs a piece of broken table, but Bigelow punches the table into his face. Bigelow also punches a chair into Shane’s face. Bigelow shoulder blocks a chair into Douglas in the ring. Douglas dropkicks Bigelow and both men are down. Bigelow has Douglas over the shoulder to hit the Greetings From Asbury Park to win the match. (**. A decent main event that may have been ended early as Douglas was holding his elbow and may have hurt himself. I enjoyed the brawling around ringside and they did enough to hold my interest.)
Final Thoughts:
A lackluster ECW show despite a rather strong card on paper. That’s the trend for ECW house shows lately. ECW rarely has solid house shows and yet I continually review them hoping for the best.
Thanks for reading.