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NXT UK TV REPORT (EP. 98)
JUNE 4, 2020
STREAMED ON WWE NETWORK
REPORT BY CHAD KOENIG, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Hosted By: Andy Shepherd (from home).
-This week’s episode is titled “Gallus Boys On Top.” It is a best-of compilation of Gallus’ matches and history.
-Shepherd starts the episode explaining how Gallus formed. It happened during the NXT UK Championship tournament on June 26, 2018 when Joe and Mark Coffey officially joined forces with NXT original Wolfgang.
(1) GALLUS (Mark Coffey & Joe Coffey & Wolfgang) vs. BRITISH STRONG STYLE (Trent Seven & Pete Dunne & Tyler Bate)
-Note: this match was joined in progress.
Bate and Mark Coffey were in the ring when they started to show the match. Gallus traded tags in the corner, beating down Bate until Wolfgang got the tag back in. Bate escaped a waistlock reversal to get the tag in to Seven. He came in laying in chops and a backdrop. Wolfgang rolled out of the ring right before Seven’s obligatory rope dive. Wolfgang got rolled back in and tossed to the corner. Mark would then run in to help his partner. Mark held on to Seven while Wolfgang went to the top. He jumped but Seven moved, knocking into Mark. Cover and Wolfgang for two.Wolfgang then kicked Bate out of the ring.
Wolfgang tossed Seven into the stairs before rolling him back in the ring for two. They sent him back to Gallus’ corner and continued the beating while exchanging tags. With Mark as the legal man, Seven started to battle back and climbed the turnbuckle he was and executed a beautiful superplex. Seven crawled over for to tag in Dunne.
When Dunne came in, Gallus were there to meet him and he suplexed and tossed the faction out of the ring, and locked in a kneebar to the legal Wolfgang. He fought and crawled his way to tag in Mark, who came in and immediately got caught in a triangle choke. Unknowing to Bate, Wolfgang tagged himself back in and went to the top. He went up for a swanton and got caught in an armbar upon landing. Wolfgang used his strength by lifting Dunne up and countering his hold- getting slammed to the ground. Dunne gets the tag in to Bate who came in swinging, followed by a jumping uppercut from the middle rope. Bate with a shooting star for two. Joe then lifted Bate up and spun him in a wheelbarrel for two. Bate got up and lifted Joe up and held him an overly long airplane spin before dumJoe counter a Tyler Driver with a headbutt, and Bate serving a hard right, leaving both men face down.
Both men went to their corners and traded in Seven and Mark. Tag back in to Bate and all three members of British Strong Style slammed Mark to the ground. Wolfgang broke up the pinfall. All six were in the ring at this point, and when the ring got cleared, Joe taunted Dunne with his title so Mark could get a roll up for two. Tag to Joe. He comes in and power bombed Dunne before Seven ran in fo the break up. Everyone came back into the ring again and Joe cleared the ring. Joe and Bate looked at each other and it became a slugfest. Joe ran at the tired Dunne and was met with a knee to the head, flattening both fighters.
While Dunne was wrapped up in Joe and snapping his fingers, Wolfgang tased himself in and dropped an elbow. Dunne rolled to tag in Bate. Bate with a hurricanrana and Wolfgang rolled outside where the rest of the teams were battling. Bate went to the top and hit a corkscrew that took everyone down. Back in the ring, Bate lifted up Wolfgang and hit a running kick. Joe became the legal man again. Tyler went for a Tyler Driver 97, but it was countered and Joe connected with a lariat that ended the match.
WINNER: GALLUS at 18:11
(Koenig’s Analysis: A fine match showing off Gallus who dominated more of this match than not. This match did have its wonky parts to it. Some missed spots, outside chaos, etc. But that happens with a lot of six-man tag matches.)
-Video package showing Gallus’ dominance
-NXT Takeover: In Your House commercial
-Andy Shepherd at home presenting a vignette on Joe Coffey
(2) DAVE MASTIFF vs. JOE COFFEY- LAST MAN STANDING MATCH
(From NXT UK Takeover Cardiff, August 31, 2019)
Mastiff attacked Coffey while he was en route to the ring. The bell rang and we were off. The two exchanged heavy forearms as they went back in the ring. Mastiff tossed him into the corner and the top rope became disconnected. Mastiff pulled the turnbuckle post out and held it on Coffey’s mouth before he slammed his head onto the mat. [c]
When they returned to the match, Mastiff was out of the ring, whipping away at Coffey with a chain. Mastiff set up a table on the barricade. Coffey stood up and he was met with a cannonball that put him through the table. Both men got up at the count of nine.
The fight was now into the crowd. Mastiff had a chair and cracked it across his back several times before he took down the big man with a lariat. Both men got up, with Mastiff holding two chairs. He slid one to Coffey and the two ran into each other, slamming the chairs and knocking both men down. The match moved near the announce booth, and Coffey charged at Wolfgang, but he tossed him over the barricade next to the announce table. Mastiff cleared the monitors from it and both men went up. Mastiff with a rolling senton on top of the table.
After a long count, both men brought the match in what looked like a riser set above the announce booth. A (weak-looking) headbutt from Mastiff knocked them both down and onto the floor. Coffey got up at nine, and Mastiff was almost there, but Coffey kicked out the rolling cart that he was using to get up, and knocked him down in time for a legal ten count.
WINNER: Coffey at 10:38
(Koenig’s Analysis: A fun walking brawl. I liked the use of the ring post in the beginning, as well as the table set up. There were a couple of spots that the wrestlers didn’t connect with each other and were quite obvious. I really enjoyed the creative finish.)
-Vignette from when Gallus won their first tag team titles on the brand, and highlighted when Drew McIntyre and Nikki Cross, other fellow Scotsmen, won theirs at WrestleMania 36.
-Andy Shepherd hosting a Zoom chat with Scottish stars McIntyre, Nikki Cross, Kay Lee Ray and Gallus.
-Video package on Gallus’ title run
-Undertaker “The Last Ride” commercial
(3) GALLUS (Mark Coffey and Wolfgang) (c) vs. IMPERIUM (Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel) vs. GRIZZLED YOUNG VETERANS (James Drake & Zack Gibson) vs. MARK ANDREWS & FLASH MORGAN WEBSTER – Ladder Match
-Note: this match was already underway when they started it.
As the match was in progress, ladders were set up in two corners, with Webster escaping Imperium by using his acrobatic skills over and under the ladders. He was then taken out by being put face first into the ladder. Andrews came in after Imperium gloated and took them down momentarily before Imperium cornered him with a ladder and got dropkicked to the jaw. GYV and Gallus came back in at this point and Gallus stood tall after taking them out by slamming them into ladders. Gallus started to climb the ladders but Gallus pulled them down ad the action went outside of the ring. Morgan & Webster attempted to take advantage but Gallus came in and put a stop to that. However, Andrews did almost make it to the top rung, but executed a shooting star onto Coffey below.
Imperium made it back to the ring and their attempts were thwarted by Webster, so Barthel slammed him back first into a ladder, followed by a moonsault from Aichner. GYV then made it back into the ring while they were all down and set up a third, and much taller ladder. Six of the wrestlers were battling on the three ladders that were set up while Andrews set up a fourth ladder horizontally with help from the top rope, and Webster coming in with a fifth. Webster pressed his ladder up against Gibson and started to climb. It was a cluster of everyone just inches from the belts. At this point, all of the ladders collapsed except the center one with the ladder connecting on the ropes, and GYD being the only team left standing. Gibson put Drake on his shoulders so he could grab it but Imperium broke that up.
After Imperium cleaned the ring of wrestlers and unnecessary ladders, they made their venture to the top only to be stopped by Gallus. The two Scots grabbed ladders and sandwiched Imperium between them while running at them. All of the ladders were then removed from the ring, after Andrews and Webster pulled out the last one that Gallus were going for. Gallus pulled them up into the ring by their hair, but Andrews and Webster connected with a double Stundog Millionaire. As all men were down, Andrews and Webster grabbed the largest ladder. Gallus met them outside and crawled with them. Gallus then pulled out a pair of tables from under the ring and set them up on the barricade. Andrews and Webster hulked up and pounded away at Gallus and put them on the tables instead, with Coffey’s table collapsing prematurely. Andrews and Webster set the tall ladder outside of the ring, and above Wolfgang as he lie on the table. The two coordinated a double flip down on top of him, over a chant of “Please don’t die!”
Andrews and Webster were beaten, but they made it back into the ring with another ladder. Andrews slowly climbed it but GYV came back in and knocked him off by ramming a ladder into his spine. As he lay on the ground, Gibson told Drake to climb the ladder while he protected him. Andrews came back up with a kendo stick and cleared the ring of GYV. It was now Imperium’s turn to come in and they took out Andrews with a brain buster. Barthel made it up and touched the titles, but Coffey came in quick from behind and tried to pull him down. However, Aichner held the ladder on the other side for leverage. Wolfgang then ran in and put Aichner through a ladder. they then knocked Barthel off the top and into the crowd of wrestlers at ringside. Gallus climbed the ladders and grabbed the titles for the win.
WINNER: Gallus at 19:48
(Koenig’s Analysis: This was a fun ladder match, and the first under the NXT UK moniker. A lot of great, innovative spots and to me, Andrews and Webster stole the show.)
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