NEW Thunder 8/28/2016

Northeast Wrestling presents Thunder
Date: 8/28/2016
From: Bethany, CT

Opening Contest: Adrenaline Rush (Daniel Evans & Keith Youngblood) vs. The American Destroyers (Donovan Dijak & Mikey Webb): Evans and Webb start the contest with Evans throwing Webb into the corner, but doesn’t follow up. Dijak tags into the contest and attacks Evans from behind with strikes. Evans forearms Dijah a few times and Dijak is sent into the corner chest first with an atomic drop. Dijak is punched by both men and avoids a back suplex tagging in Webb. Webb forearms Evans and sends Evans into the corner face first. Evans nails Webb with a big boot and tags in Youngblood. Webb is met with a double arm drag, a flipping neckbreaker and an elbow drop for a two count. Webb dumps Youngblood to the apron, but Youngblood fights back with strikes. Dijak stomps on Youngblood on the floor. Webb manages a two count. Webb suplexs Youngblood and Dijak hits a twisting splash off the middle rope for a near fall. Dijak hip tosses Youngblood and Webb delivers a dropkick followed by Dijak hitting a senton for a two count. Dijak chokes Youngblood over the middle rope and prevents a tag out to Evans. Youngblood escapes Dijak and tags in Evans. Evans cleans house with a big boot and a slam to Webb across the ring. Webb boots Evans in the corner and runs into a side slam. Evans tries for a backdrop, but Webb holds on and is sent into the ropes.

Dijak tags in and boots Evans followed by a forearm. Dijak and Webb hit a double team chokebreaker. Dijak hits a springboard moonsault for a near fall as Youngblood made the save. Youngblood is double teamed in the corner with stomps. Dijak accidentally forearms Webb and Evans accidentally hits Youngblood. Dijak superkicks Webb on accident. Evans is met with a double boot, but comes back with a double clothesline. Dijak blocks a punch by Evans and is accidentally kicked by Webb. Evans tosses Webb into the ring from the apron. Dijak pulls Evans to the floor and Webb takes both men out with a dive over the top to the floor. Youngblood heads to the top hitting a crossbody onto everyone outside the ring! Youngblood is tagged in and Evans decks Scotty Slade off the apron. Webb low blows both Evans and Youngblood. Dijak hits a slingshot sunset flip allowing Webb to hit a Destroyer and Dijak pins Youngblood for the win. (**1/2. The flow of the match seemed a little off, but I enjoyed what they presented here for the most part. The finish felt weird as I don’t understand the need fo the slingshot sunset flip to hit a Destroyer, but visually I can see the appeal. Dijak and Webb make for a fun duo.)

Second Contest: Wrecking Ball Legursky vs. Jake Manning: Legursky attacks before the bell to gain the cheap advantage. Manning tries to fight back with strikes, but Legursky stops Manning with strikes. Manning delivers a jawbreaker, but Legurksy puts a bearhug on Manning. Manning tries to fight out with elbow strikes and is rammed into the corner back first. Manning boots Legursky in the corner followed by a big boot. Legursky catches Manning on a crossbody to hit a fallaway slam. Legursky misses a running cannonball in the corner. Manning nearly wins the match by count-out, but Legursky rolls back in and is nearly pinned with a rollup. Manning hammers away on Legursky with jabs and a right hand to stagger Legursky. Legursky slams Manning to the mat with a spinebuster. Legursky press slams Manning into a body slam for the easy win. (1/2*. Basically a squash match for Legursky. Not a big deal.)

Third Contest: Ron Zombie vs. Dan De Man: Long story short, Zombie went after Kenny Bengals and was met with a cutter by Dan De Man leading to the three count.

Fourth Contest: Dexter Loux vs. The Mac: Long story short, Mac wins the match following a sit out powerbomb. It didn’t go much past five minutes.

Fifth Contest: Caleb Konley vs. Vinny Marseglia: Konley takes Marseglia down to the mat and briefly had control with a head scissors on the mat. Marseglia breaks free and retreats to a corner. Konley drop toe holds Marseglia to the mat, but is backed into a corner allowing Marseglia to break free. Konley shoulder blocks Marseglia followed by a chop and strikes in the corner. Konley hip tosses Marseglia across the ring and goes to the apron to deliver a strike and rams Vinny into the top turnbuckle. Konley tries for a tornado DDT, but Vinny yanks Konley off the and rams Konley into the middle turnbuckle. Vinny stomps on Konley and taunts the crowd. Vinny taunts the referee and beats on Konley over the apron. Vinny tosses Konley off the apron to the floor and Konley fights back with strikes. Konley kicks Vinny in the front row. Marseglia sends Konley into the ring post shoulder first. Marseglia brings the action back into the ring. Marseglia connects with a vertical suplex for a two count. Konley back elbows Marseglia, but is taken over with a German suplex for a two count.

Konley kicks Marseglia away in the corner and they begin to trade forearm strikes. Konley nails Vinny with a forearm strike and runs into a kick to the midsection. Konley avoids Vinny against the ropes and hits a suicide dive to the floor! Konley comes off the ropes with a shoulder block and a spinning powerbomb for a two count. Konley heads to the top rope missing a move, but rolls through and is met with a yakuza kick for a two count. Konley kicks Marseglia into the corner and delivers a running forearm strike. Marseglia hits a back suplex/elbow drop combo for a two count. Konley kicks Vinny a few times connecting with a superkick to cause both men to go down. Konley hammers away on Marseglia, but Marseglia battles back with strikes. Konley delivers a spinning back fist followed by a Cradle Shock for a two count. Konley misses a moonsault, but lands on his feet. Marseglia forearms Konley, but sells his injured arm. Marseglia almost wins with a rollup, but hits a double under hook backbreaker to win the match. (**3/4. It seems like a rare occurrence to see someone actually win with a fake injury angle, but they pulled it off here. I don’t think anyone really bought the injury. I know I didn’t. The injury didn’t seem to fit the match, but there was decent action throughout to make it enjoyable for what it was.)

Sixth Contest: NEW Tag Team Champions So Over (Jimmy Preston & Mark Shurman) vs. The Battle Brothers (Anthony & Chris): Preston and Chris kickoff the title match. Chris works over Preston in the corner with a strike and headbutt. Preston fights out of the corner and beats on Chris with a few strikes after an awkward Irish whip. The champs ram Chris groin first into the ring post. Preston atomic drops Chris followed by an atomic drop. Shurman tags into the match and they take Chris down to the mat and yank his legs apart for a two count. Shurman sends Chris head first into opposite corners several times. Shurman connects with a dropkick for a near fall. Shurman tries for a suplex, but Chris breaks free and connects with a swinging side slam. Anthony splashes Shurman in the corner to keep control of the contest. Chris returns to the match and the challengers slam Shurman for a two count. Chris clotheslines Shurman for a near fall. Anthony tags back into the match and misses a splash in the corner. Shurman dumps Chris over the top to the floor, but Anthony prevents a tag from taking place.

Anthony slams Shurman and keeps a chin lock on Shurman. Shurman runs into a shoulder block, but kicks out at two. Anthony plants Shurman with a side slam for a near fall. Preston gets the hot tag and hammers away on Anthony with forearm strikes. Chris is sent into Anthony and dropkicked by Preston. Preston clotheslines Anthony in the corner followed by a running bulldog for a near fall. Shurman shoulder blocks Anthony from the middle rope and Anthony falls over Preston for a two count. Chris spears Preston followed by a cutter on Shurman. Anthony nearly pins Shurman. Chris misses a spear in the corner and the champs hit a middle rope dropkick/spinebuster combo for the win. (*1/4. The only reason I reviewed this was because it’s a title match. It’s not a good match with the Battle Brothers not looking good and most notably Chris looking lost in there sometimes on simple moves or transitions. A poor tag title match on the card.) After the match, The NOW attack the Battle Brothers. Hale Collins elbow drops Chris over Vik’s knees. Vik cuts a promo saying the fans are suppose to believe that mediocrity is excellence. Vik promises that 2016 is the year of the NOW. Anthony gets up after they leave and cuts a promo saying that he’s not going to let them do that to them in his hometown and they walk off pissed off. Looks like they will be wrestling on September 10th.

Seventh Contest: NEW Heavyweight Champion Hanson vs. Kamaitachi in a non-title match: Hanson throws Kamaitachi to the mat in the early moments of the match. Hanson continues with a shoulder block. Kamaitachi gets out of a Death Valley Driver and sends the champ to the floor. Kamaitachi is distracted by Stevie Stamos on the floor as he attempted a dive. Sumie Sakai comes out to be in Kamaitachi corner. Kamaitachi puts an abdominal stretch on Hanson and gets help from the front row making a line of people hold hands. Hanson doesn’t give up even with the entire front row adding leverage. Hanson collapses to the mat, but didn’t submit. Hanson knee lifts Kamaitachi and pummels Kamaitachi on the mat with right hands. Hanson works over Kamaitachi in the corner with strikes to the midsection. Hanson knee lifts Kamaitachi to the mat. Hanson rakes his beard across Kamaitachi’s face and taunts the fans. Hanson continues to deliver strikes on the floor. Hanson delivers a kick in the ring for a two count. Hanson puts an abdominal stretch on Kamaitachi and gets leverage from Stamos, who tries to get the crowd to help and fails. Kamaitachi hip tosses Hanson and tries for a slam. Kamaitachi superkicks Hanson and comes off the ropes with a hurricanrana. Kamaitachi heads to the top rope leaping off to hit a missile dropkick for a near fall. Kamaitachi comes off the ropes with a double knee strike for a near fall. Hanson has Kamaitachi over his shoulder, but Kamaitachi breaks free. Hanson connects with a lariat for a two count. Hanson misses a kick and is superkicked a couple of times. Kamaitachi scoop slams Hanson before going to the top rope. Kamaitachi is stopped by Stamos and Sakai low blows Stamos. Kamaitachi almost wins with a double knee off the top rope! Hanson nails Kamaitachi with a spin kick to win the match. (*1/2. There was some comedy thrown in here, but this didn’t do a lot for me. The closing sequence had a couple of close calls that were done well, but the outcome here felt fairly obvious and that took me out from believing there would be an upset.)

Eighth Contest: TK O’Ryan vs. Brian Anthony in a number one contenders match: TK wants to shake hands with Anthony, and he accepts. Anthony backs TK into a corner, but cleanly backs away. They lockup again and TK backs Anthony into a corner leading to a clean break. They trade a couple of rollups, arm drags and pin attempts leading to another standoff. Anthony shoulder blocks TK, but is met with a dropkick for a two count. TK takes Anthony over with a vertical suplex for a two count and hits a side Russian leg sweep. TK delivers a knee drop for a two count. Anthony dumps TK to the apron, but TK rolls back in and Anthony connects with a swinging neckbreaker for a two count. Anthony forearms TK a few times followed by a backdrop. Anthony kicks TK and hits a missile dropkick off the middle rope. Anthony misses a spear in the corner hitting the ring post shoulder first crashing to the floor in the process. They trade strikes around ringside with TK getting the advantage. TK heads to the top, but misses a crossbody in the ring. Anthony tries for a cover, but TK kicks out at two. Anthony sends TK hard into the corner back first for another near fall. Anthony lifts TK into the air and drops TK down to the mat gut first for a near fall.

Anthony keeps TK on the mat with a front face lock. Anthony knee lifts TK hitting a snap suplex for another two count. Anthony keeps a nerve hold on TK, but doesn’t get a submission. TK fights out with chops and drops Anthony to the mat. TK connects with a knee assisted face buster. TK forearms Anthony in the corner followed by a slap. TK runs into a yakuza kick and Anthony manages a two count. Anthony beats on TK on the top rope looking for a suplex, but is shoved off. Anthony forearms TK and tries for a superplex, but TK headbutts Anthony to the mat and connects with a top rope elbow drop. TK looks for a cover, but Anthony kicks out at two. TK is stopped by a kick, but blocks a springboard with a pele kick of his own and almost pins Anthony. However, Anthony got his boot on the ropes. TK heads to the top rope, but is met with a kick by Anthony. Anthony takes TK off the ropes with a powerslam off the middle rope. Both men are on their knees when Hanson’s music hits and Stevie Stamos comes out mock clapping for both men. Hanson enters from behind and nails Anthony with the championship. Hanson spin kicks TK to leave both men laying. Hanson tells both men they will never get the championship. The crowd is chanting ‘bullshit” for this. However, Kurt Adonis comes out and announces that Hanson will now defend the championship in a three way dance on September 10th. Anthony and TK knock Hanson down and then brawl with each other once again. (**1/2. The match was going fine, but the non-finish made it all pointless. Sure, there’s now a three way dance, but why not just book a triple threat from the beginning? The crowd didn’t like the finish they went with and I didn’t either quite frankly.) After the match, Hanson splashes both men from the middle rope as officials are trying to gain order. TK hits a suicide dive on Anthony. TK and Hanson brawl in the ring. Anthony rolls in as well leading to more brawling. Anthony dives off the top rope to take everyone out on the floor.

Ninth Contest: Jushin Liger vs. Flip Gordon: They shake hands to start off the contest showing respect for each other. Liger takes Gordon down to the mat and locks in a surfboard and leans back looking for a quick submission, but Gordon doesn’t give in. Liger switches to a chin lock, but Gordon continues to hold on. Liger works over Gordon with chops in the corner. Gordon boots Liger followed by a springboard clothesline. Gordon connects with a handspring back elbow for a near fall. Gordon ducks a clothesline and delivers a kick to drop Liger for a two count. Gordon goes to the top, but Liger cuts Gordon off. Liger hooks Gordon for a superplex and hits it. Liger tries for a cover, but Gordon kicks out. Liger waits in the corner and delivers a running palm strike followed by a running Liger Bomb for a near fall! Gordon avoids a brainbuster and elbows free hitting a head scissors to send Liger to the floor. Gordon hits a somersault dive over the top to the floor onto Liger! Gordon hits a springboard senton for a near fall. Gordon heads to the top rope hitting a 450 splash managing a two count! Liger stops Gordon coming off the ropes with a rollup for the win. (**1/2. The finish was abrupt and not expected. I didn’t like that for the finish, at all. It was a fine showcase between the two, but there’s no denying that they’d have a hell of a match if they had more time to develop stuff. I’m wondering if Liger got hurt or something that caused a quick finish. This is a hell of a moment for Gordon in NEW.)

Main Event: Cody Rhodes vs. Sami Callihan: Callihan backs Rhodes into a corner, but is pushed down to the mat. Callihan controls Rhodes with a headlock on the mat, but Rhodes counters with a headlock of his own and they have a standoff. Callihan shakes Rhodes hand and delivers a pump kick followed by a springboard clothesline knocking Rhodes off the apron. Callihan hits a suicide dive on the floor, but Rhodes hits a Disaster Kick to knock Sami off the apron and connects with a springboard crossbody to the floor. Callihan kicks Rhodes on the ramp and sends Rhodes into the ring post. Callihan chops Rhodes against the post. Rhodes is seated on a chair in the front row and is met with another chop. Callihan forearms Rhodes onto the chair and gets a running start to deliver another chop. Rhodes gets up and fires back with chops, but Callihan stops Rhodes with a forearm strike. Callihan runs around the ringside area and hits a cannonball splash knocking Rhodes out of a chair. Callihan chops Rhodes onto another chair. Rhodes leaps off the ring steps to hit a disaster kick! Rhodes misses a clothesline and hits the ring post. Callihan throws Rhodes outside of the venue into the parking lot. Rhodes returns to the ring as Sami wanted a count out. Rhodes slides back in and is thrown back to the floor. Callihan follows to the floor and hits a snap suplex on the floor. Sami really wants a count-out.

Rhodes rolls back into the ring to avoid being counted out. Rhodes nearly wins with an inside cradle. Rhodes blocks a pump kick and hits a flatliner. Rhodes tries for a double leg slam, but Callihan counters with a rollup for a two count. Rhodes locks in the American Nightmare leg lock submission, but Callihan reaches the ropes to break the hold. Rhodes misses a splash in the corner and Callihan hits a running boot to the face in the corner. Callihan taunts the crowd and Rhodes comes back with a clothesline. Callihan plants Rhodes with a Death Valley Driver for a two count. Callihan clotheslines Rhodes, but Rhodes comes back with a forearm. Callihan pump kicks Rhodes, but Rhodes delivers a throat thrust. They collide on clothesline and drop to the mat. Callihan chops Rhodes several times and is met with a Disaster Kick leading to a near fall. Rhodes double leg slams Callihan for a near fall. Rhodes tries for Cross Rhodes, but Sami delivers a kick and a knee strike. Callihan powerbombs Rhodes and switches to a Crossface looking for a submission in the middle of the ring. Rhodes rolls over and nearly pins Callihan. Rhodes plants Callihan with the Cross Rhodes, but Callihan got his boot on the bottom rope. Rhodes locks in the American Nightmare leg lock and forces Callihan to submit. After the match, Callihan tells Rhodes that he respects him and walks off. (***1/2. I thought that was a really good main event as they didn’t have much downtime and they went at a great pace for 15+ minutes. I probably would have done a Cross Rhodes finish instead of the flat submission, but it’s a good match and a great way to end the show.)

Final Thoughts:
There are a few solid undercard matches and a really good main event that was enough to carry this to a solid overall show. Cody/Callihan being as good as it was really helped the show. I’m going to give this a mild thumbs up.
Thanks for reading.