It’s a new year, yes it is. Fair City Wrestling return with the second half of the Fair City Rumble fall out event from the Empire Zone fka The Tulloch Institute in Perth. Stevie Wizard was on hand to give fair warning for the impending Last Man Standing match.

Last Man Standing – Caleb Valhalla vs ADM ended in a draw.

No time was wasted with the opening bell being rung and the two behemoths went hammer and tong, both looking to get the killer blow early but it was counter after counter. ADM finally took control with a big boot to the face to stop a spearing Valhalla.

Caleb got a shoulder block in to get some momentum, relying on an agility advantage but his top rope scaling was thwarted with a big forearm from ADM to send Valhalla tumbling to the wooden floor.

Another forearm, this time to the back of the neck, which kept Valhalla down to the count of six. Valhalla continued to fight, absorbing more forearms, unleashing a flurry of punches to rock The Clyde River Killer. Landing a second rope shoulder block to send ADM onto his back.

ADM fired back with a Claymore Kick and Choke Breaker, but it only reached a count of 7. A Powerbomb was countered as Valhalla ran through ADM with a spear but wasn’t enough for the count to reach its conclusion.

Both men continued throwing fists, a stereo clothesline lead the match to a reset as they rolled out of the ring at 9 to land on their feet. Their eyes met at either side of the ring, with both wrestlers going under the ring to bring out the weapons to a roar from the Empire Zone.

The brawl made it’s way to the crowd, Valhalla smashed a baking tray over the face of ADM, who only made it back up using a chair as a crutch. The chair would come back into play as Caleb found it rebounding into his own face courtesy of a Claymore Kick for a close call.

ADM brought in a massive wooden board, but his preparation was interrupted by getting a White Noise from Caleb onto a buckled metal bin. They fought between a rock and a hard place aka a chair and wooden board. ADM threw Caleb into the corner with a Razor’s Edge into the placed chair, Valhalla rebounded by spearing ADM threw the wooden board.

The 10 count was reached with neither man able to get to their feet to cause a draw. Once they were standing once more, a handshake was offered by ADM and was shared.

A chaotic and wild 20 minutes, the escalation of the action was great as it started as a slugfest before both simultaneously agreed that it wasn’t going to be enough. The crowd was along for the ride especially when the artillery was brought out. The black eyes were forming on ADM as the match concluded to show the result of the war that has taken place. The handshake was possibly the conclusion to this tale as neither could really be separated one on one. I loved this.

Jay Robin defeated Sami Sparx by pinfall.

Before the match Stevie Wizard announced that a fan in the front row, Jacob, would celebrate his 13th birthday as the guest ringside enforcer. The FCW crowd were loud for Jay Robin, and Sparx tried to avoid getting into the action in the early going, making excuses for Jay getting the early upper hand. Jacob played his role well, standing up and towering over Sami when Sparx tried a bit of intimidation and ringside.

A firing knee from Robin into the corner almost sparked out Sami, but the Chaotic Luchador found his way back into the action, cracking Jay Robin with a hard enziguri for a near fall.

The two exchanged chops, as Robin started building momentum with a spear and Sling Blade, but a Shining Stevie couldn’t keep Sami Sparx down. A errant Shotgun Dropkick knocked out referee Sean Moran which gave Sparx the opening for a Final Cut but a Swanton Bomb was missed as Sparx was hoisted up for a Gory Bomb, the lack of referee didn’t deter Robin as the fan that was picked as special ringside enforcer before the match grabbed a referee shirt and made a very fair three count.

A feel good match, a simple story and had some great fan interaction. To think a year prior when Jay Robin was a last minute replacement for Caleb Valhalla against ADM that he got a very tepid reaction to now when he entered to a heroes welcome showed what he has been able to achieve in Fair City Wrestling in the 12 months since.

It was less than 10 minutes and primarily story driven, so the match might not have been an in-ring classic but it garnered a great reaction. Sami Sparx cut back his usual high flying offense to maximise being the heel, with the Jay Robin vanquishing the bad guy, and an assist from Jacob’s spot on officiating, FCW management get him signed up!

Elimination Match – Lou King Sharp, Euan G Mackie, & Botchico defeated DE (Duke, Asher, & Spike Tierney).

DE got to work before the bell to send Mackie and Botchico to the floor in order to outnumber Lou King Sharp, despite his spirited fight, they took him out quickly with a triple team 3D. Botchico and Mackie returned to give DE little time to bask in their own glory, sending Duke and Asher tumbling out of the ring. Giving Spike Tierney a taste of a triple team with Sharp adding the finishing touch with a Frog Splash.

The match settled with the tag ropes grabbed and two wrestlers in the ring. The treatment of Spike Tierney continued as Sharp, Mackie, and Botchico made quick tags as the crowd bayed for Tierney’s arm to be ripped out of its socket.

A five man Russian Leg Sweep was set off by a Lou King Sharp drop kick to cause a break down with all six men in the ring. A triple Sunset Flip sent DE to regroup on the outside but were soon followed by a flying Euan G Mackie, their recovery was met by a launched Lou King Sharp, before finally Botchico dropped from the top turnbuckle into the DE pile.

Following the anarchy on the outside, the match returned to the ring with DE in control, keeping Mackie in their corner. A suplex escape gave Mackie a chance to tag in Sharp but Lou fell victim to a Magic Killer/Foot Stomp combo dubbed the Triple Collider to be eliminated.

Botchico was next for the isolation station, but some quick escapology saw the masked man get Duke laying in place for an ill-timed Spike Tierney Swanton Bomb. Euan G Mackie ran wild but was stopped by a brass knuckle wielding Sebastian Asher which caused a disqualification, but left Mackie an easy pin to leave it two on one.

Just as it looked like it was all DE, Botchico snuck a roll up to take out Duke, who responded by giving Botchico a lariat. It couldn’t put Botchico away, who then survived a Ripcord Enziguri and a TKO Facebuster.

An Abra-Kebabra was countered into a Complete Shot, before Botchico put the finishing touches to the match with an Impaler DDT to pin the FCW Junior Heavyweight Champion and win the contest.

A highly enjoyable main event that has certainly put stock into Botchico potentially being the one to give Spike a close run and even maybe beat him to end the champion’s colossal FCW Junior Heavyweight Championship reign. Former tag team partners, to fierce rivals, total cinema etc.

The layout of how DE were eliminated was very good. The cheap shot sacrifice from Sebastian Asher, the distracted cockiness from Duke, then the underestimating tone from Spike Tierney all lead to the faction leaving Perth as the losers.

The Empire Zone was rocking for these three matches. From the no holds barred brutality of the Last Man Standing Match, the elation to see Jay Robin victorious, and the swell of support for Botchico to triumph over the big bad villainous faction. It’s important to note that for the latter two matches the guys that got the biggest cheers were homegrown from Fair City Wrestling (Jay Robin and Botchico) and it’s training facility, which gives credit to the atmosphere and impact that they and the promotion are having on the local crowds.

An easy watch, the hour flew by, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the Spike-Botchico situation develops.

The show is available on YouTube: