Wrestling Invasion Tour at Braid Theatre!
Thursday, 13 November 2008
The Metal Master: on Saturday night’s wrestling bill in Ballymena.
Top class wrestl-ing, featuring Superstars of America on their Invasion Tour, comes to Baly-mena on Saturday night,writes Shaun O'Neill.
The fight venue at the Braid Theatre (Town Hall) will be transformed into an exciting fighting arena where some of the best wrestlers from the USA, Mexico and Europe will be lining up to produce the thrills and the spills expected from major league wrestling.
One of the highlights of Saturday night's event will be the appearance of Chad Collyer from Liberty, Indiana.
He is a former WWE, TNA and Ring Of Honor (ROH) star and was a very successful amateur wrestler in his younger days.
He is now regarded as a 'Wrestler's Wrestler' - a man who has the ability to tie up his opponent in knots and drag him face down all over the canvas.
He is a regular visitor to Japanese rings and is very highly regarded in that country where they appreciate the technical hold-for-hold style of this young American star.
Flying in to Northern Ireland from Osaka, Japan will be The Metal Master - the masked sensation from South America who is in the same mould as Rey Mysterio Jnr.
This man will have you on the edge of your seats with his high-flying manoeuvres.
Also seeing action at The Braid will be 'The Highlander' Drew McDonald.
Drew has many years experience in the ring and has wrestled all over Europe, many of the African countries and all over the Middle East.
He spent quite a while wrestling in Canada and the USA for the late Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling.
Stu was the father of Owen and Bret Hart and Drew was a regular competitor on shows that also featured Chris Benoit, Daveyboy Smith and The Dynamite Kid.
He held the British Heavyweight Title for over 12 months but lost it in a Ladder Match at the Fairfield Hall in Croyden, Surrey.
As a very young rookie in the wrestling game, Drew wrestled the late Giant Haystacks at the old Town Hall venue in the 80's.
"I remember the Ballymena Town Hall like it was only yesterday. I have never wrestled in another hall since then that had the same atmosphere - it was just electric," he said.
Drew is currently part of the WWE's development division and is always on the lookout for new talent for the World's major wrestling company.
He also runs his own wrestling school in Leeds with former wrestler and referee Jeff Kaye (another man who wrestled at the old Town Hall venue during the 70's). McDonald has just recovered from a torn bicep injury but he assures us that he is now fighting fit again and looking forward to causing mayhem in the ring once more.
A new name on the wrestling scene is that of The Celtic Warrior.
He bears a striking resemblance to the WWE's Batista. He is big, very big, with muscles in places that most of us don't have places - and he is a born fighter.
Although he is a relative newcomer to the sport he intends to go right to the top and he doesn't mind who he knocks aside or upsets on the way.
He was recently offered a contract to be one of the gladiators on the new series of The Gladiators which is currently being filmed in London. It was a very tempting offer but he felt it wouldn't have helped his wrestling career. Despite all the publicity that the show would have generated, he didn't want to be known afterwards as a Gladiator who became a wrestler. He says he is a wrestler first and foremost and that's the way it's going to stay.
And making a comeback to the ring will be a young man from Carrickfergus - Tony Stewart - who has the distinction of being Big Daddy's tag team partner during the latter part of the 'belly butt' king's career.
Still a young man, Tony was only 15 years old when he packed his bags and headed to North Wales to become a full-time professional wrestler. He was trained by Carrickfergus' favourite Dave Finlay of WWE fame and as an amateur held championships at every level.
Tickets at just £13.00 are now on sale at The Braid box office. Tel. 028 635901.
* The old Town Hall venue in Ballymena staged regular wrestling events throughout the 70's and 80's and some of the biggest names in British Wrestling appeared there.
Who remembers names like Jackie 'Mr T.V.' Pallo, the clown prince Les Kellett, the flamboyant Adrian Street, 'Rollerball' Mark Rocco, 'Goldbelt' Brian Maxine, Giant Haystacks, Canadian 'Mighty' John Quinn, Tony St Clair, Johnny Saint, 'Iron Man' Steve Logan, Jim Breaks and Catweazle.
